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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: wound · capital · hide · bat · can · board · chest · bound

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. bound — tied together
  5. can — a tin
  6. wound — an injury
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. bat — the animal
  9. board — to get on
  10. wound — an injury
  11. capital — a city
  12. can — to be able to
  13. bound — certain
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. board — a committee
  17. chest — of your body
  18. can — a tin
  19. bound — obliged
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. chest — of your body
  24. capital — money

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