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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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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: rash · deal · fork · wound · capital · wax · fan · arm

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. wound — an injury
  3. capital — money
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. deal — to handle
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. rash — hasty
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. capital — a city
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. rash — a series
  19. wound — an injury
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. wax — to grow
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. fork — in a road

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