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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: stock · bulb · mouse · season · bound · capital

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. bound — certain
  3. stock — shares
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. season — in sport
  6. bulb — for light
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. capital — a city
  9. bound — tied together
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. stock — goods
  12. capital — money
  13. bound — obliged
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. bulb — for light
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. season — of the year

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