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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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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: fall · bark · capital · bulb · craft · mug · content · ground

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. ground — crushed
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. capital — a city
  7. fall — to drop
  8. bulb — for light
  9. fall — the season
  10. craft — boats
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. content — happy
  13. bulb — for light
  14. mug — to rob
  15. content — the amount
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. mug — a cup
  18. bark — to shout
  19. mug — a face
  20. fall — to drop
  21. craft — a skill
  22. ground — the earth
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. ground — a position

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