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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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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: straw · snap · capital · pound · season · bark

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. capital — a city
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. season — of the year
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. pound — a weight
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. snap — to click
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. capital — money
  18. bark — to shout

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