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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
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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: bark · capital · tube · wave · content · can · season · snap

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. capital — a city
  3. season — in sport
  4. capital — money
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. content — happy
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. content — the amount
  13. can — a tin
  14. snap — to click
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. season — of the year
  17. can — a tin
  18. tube — a container
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. tube — the underground
  21. bark — to shout
  22. can — to be able to
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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