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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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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: capital · firm · mate · temple · bound · pound · content · cell

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. bound — certain
  3. capital — money
  4. mate — a friend
  5. firm — decided
  6. pound — a weight
  7. mate — to breed
  8. content — happy
  9. content — the amount
  10. firm — a company
  11. firm — steady
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. mate — a partner
  16. cell — in biology
  17. bound — tied together
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. bound — obliged
  21. cell — a phone
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. capital — a city
  24. pound — to hit hard

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