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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 116 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: kick · rash · capital · file · degree · bound · can · club

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. degree — temperature
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. rash — a series
  5. club — a group
  6. file — a line of people
  7. can — to be able to
  8. file — a document
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. file — a tool
  11. degree — from a university
  12. rash — hasty
  13. bound — obliged
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. capital — money
  16. bound — certain
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. bound — tied together
  19. can — a tin
  20. kick — in football
  21. degree — an amount
  22. club — for golf
  23. club — for dancing
  24. capital — a city

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