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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
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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: land · pitcher · fan · foot · chair · wake · capital · straw

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. wake — a trail
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. capital — money
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. land — to come down
  9. foot — a measure
  10. capital — a city
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. land — ground
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. land — a country
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. chair — a leader

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