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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: bound · wave · chest · rule · file · capital

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. bound — obliged
  3. chest — a box
  4. chest — of your body
  5. file — a document
  6. capital — money
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. bound — certain
  9. capital — a city
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. file — a tool
  12. bound — tied together
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. rule — government
  15. chest — of your body
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. file — a line of people
  18. rule — a law

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