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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: capital · content · perch · toast · board · bay · spring · object

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. object — a thing
  4. content — the amount
  5. toast — bread
  6. object — an aim
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. object — to protest
  9. spring — the season
  10. content — happy
  11. board — to get on
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. perch — the fish
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. spring — of water
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. capital — a city
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. capital — money
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. spring — a coil

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