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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bark · key · capital · pop · saw · object · cold · content

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. bark — to shout
  3. pop — to visit
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. key — in music
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. content — the amount
  8. object — a thing
  9. object — to protest
  10. cold — not warm
  11. saw — the tool
  12. pop — soda
  13. content — happy
  14. key — the most important part
  15. capital — a city
  16. key — for a lock
  17. pop — music
  18. cold — an illness
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. saw — the tool
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. object — an aim
  24. content — videos and posts

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