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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: bound · tear · chair · saw · capital · calf · game · wound

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. bound — certain
  3. tear — from crying
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. game — wild animals
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. wound — an injury
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. tear — to rip
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. chair — a leader
  14. capital — money
  15. saw — the tool
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. saw — the tool
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. bound — obliged
  20. bound — tied together
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. wound — an injury
  23. tear — from crying
  24. game — a match

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