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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: dip · land · bound · kid · club · kick · coach · capital

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. bound — tied together
  4. capital — a city
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. kid — child
  10. land — a country
  11. dip — to sink
  12. capital — money
  13. bound — certain
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. kid — to tease
  16. land — ground
  17. kick — in football
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. club — a group
  20. club — for dancing
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. bound — obliged
  24. club — for golf

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