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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: chair · cap · rush · fork · wind · fine · bound · rash

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. wind — moving air
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. fork — in a road
  6. bound — certain
  7. bound — obliged
  8. chair — a leader
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. rush — hurry
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. fine — high quality
  13. wind — moving air
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. fine — all right
  16. bound — tied together
  17. rash — hasty
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. cap — of ice
  22. rash — a series
  23. cap — a lid
  24. fork — a garden tool

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