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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: wax · firm · ruler · wound · capital · spring · sharp · chair

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. spring — the season
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. capital — money
  5. chair — a leader
  6. spring — of water
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. firm — decided
  9. firm — a company
  10. wound — an injury
  11. sharp — clever
  12. capital — a city
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. wound — an injury
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. spring — a coil
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. firm — steady

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