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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: capital · temple · leaves · straw · cabinet · bowl · chair · tear

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. capital — money
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. tear — to rip
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. tear — from crying
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. tear — from crying
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. capital — a city
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. chair — a leader
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. temple — side of the head

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com