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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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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: board · race · fork · kid · pound · capital

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. race — humankind
  3. pound — a weight
  4. capital — a city
  5. fork — in a road
  6. race — the arms race
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. capital — money
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. kid — to tease
  11. race — a contest
  12. board — to get on
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. kid — child
  18. board — a committee

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