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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: cabinet · wound · chip · straw · capital · spring · fine · wax

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. spring — the season
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. spring — of water
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. wax — to grow
  13. fine — high quality
  14. chip — for betting
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. spring — a coil
  17. capital — a city
  18. fine — all right
  19. wound — an injury
  20. capital — money
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. chip — to eat
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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