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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: game · chair · file · pass · leaves · capital · spring · wax

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. capital — money
  3. game — wild animals
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. spring — a coil
  6. file — a document
  7. capital — a city
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. spring — of water
  11. game — a match
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. chair — a leader
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. wax — to grow
  19. spring — the season
  20. file — a line of people
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. file — a tool
  24. wax — for sculpting

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