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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 116 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: leaves · hide · capital · charge · sharp · game · firm · kid

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. firm — a company
  4. game — a match
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. sharp — clever
  8. firm — steady
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. firm — decided
  12. charge — electricity
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. charge — in control
  16. kid — to tease
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. charge — a price
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. game — wild animals
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. kid — child
  23. capital — money
  24. capital — a city

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