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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 120 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: lash · capital · straw · bulb · fine · wind · spell · cabinet

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. spell — letters
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bulb — for light
  8. spell — a short time
  9. wind — moving air
  10. capital — money
  11. wind — moving air
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. capital — a city
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. fine — high quality
  20. bulb — for light
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. spell — magic

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