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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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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: capital · bound · bark · club · file · lash · snap · wake

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. bound — obliged
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. snap — to click
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. file — a line of people
  12. club — a group
  13. club — for dancing
  14. wake — a trail
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bound — tied together
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. file — a document
  20. club — for golf
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. capital — a city
  23. file — a tool
  24. bound — certain

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