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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: rule · capital · pound · dip · net · board · game · wind

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. game — wild animals
  3. wind — moving air
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. board — a committee
  7. net — for catching
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. game — a match
  10. capital — money
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. pound — a weight
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. dip — to sink
  17. net — in sport
  18. rule — a law
  19. capital — a city
  20. rule — government
  21. board — to get on
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. net — after costs

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