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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: scale · cold · capital · firm · bound · kid · toast · rest

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. rest — a break
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. firm — decided
  6. toast — bread
  7. firm — a company
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. cold — not warm
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. bound — obliged
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. kid — child
  15. firm — steady
  16. capital — a city
  17. scale — in music
  18. bound — certain
  19. cold — an illness
  20. capital — money
  21. rest — what's left
  22. scale — size or range
  23. rest — what's left
  24. kid — to tease

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