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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: face · capital · stock · game · bound · can · temple · row

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. capital — money
  3. stock — shares
  4. game — wild animals
  5. stock — goods
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. bound — certain
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. can — a tin
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. face — part of the head
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — a city
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. face — to point toward
  16. row — a line
  17. game — a match
  18. bound — obliged
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. face — to confront
  21. can — a tin
  22. row — to paddle
  23. can — to be able to
  24. stock — a soup base

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