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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 120 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 · bound · rock · stick · content · fall · object · club

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  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. content — happy
  2. capital — a city
  3. bound — tied together
  4. fall — to drop
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. rock — music
  7. fall — the season
  8. club — a group
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. club — for golf
  11. bound — obliged
  12. rock — a stone
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. object — an aim
  15. bound — certain
  16. content — the amount
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. fall — to drop
  19. object — to protest
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. club — for dancing
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. object — a thing
  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