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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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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: wax · bound · pop · bass · press · capital · bark · nail

  1. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. bass — low music
  4. press — to push
  5. capital — a city
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. pop — music
  8. pop — soda
  9. bound — certain
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. capital — money
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bound — tied together
  18. press — a publisher
  19. press — newspapers
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. bark — to shout
  22. pop — to visit
  23. wax — to grow
  24. bound — obliged

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