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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: bound · content · field · leaves · plane · band · mark · capital

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. mark — a grade
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. plane — a tool
  5. band — a music group
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. mark — a trace
  8. capital — a city
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. bound — obliged
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. bound — certain
  13. capital — money
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. field — for sport
  17. content — happy
  18. field — farmland
  19. content — the amount
  20. field — a subject
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. band — a ring
  24. bound — tied together

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