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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.

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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: pass · capital · foot · chair · spring · rule · wind · cabinet

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. capital — a city
  4. foot — a measure
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. spring — of water
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. wind — moving air
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. wind — moving air
  13. rule — a law
  14. spring — a coil
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. chair — a leader
  18. pass — a permit
  19. capital — money
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. spring — the season
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. foot — the bottom

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