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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: perch · capital · pass · tear · key · pop · bound · row

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. tear — to rip
  4. capital — a city
  5. bound — obliged
  6. key — in music
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. tear — from crying
  11. perch — the fish
  12. pass — a permit
  13. row — a line
  14. pop — music
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. pop — soda
  17. capital — money
  18. tear — from crying
  19. row — to paddle
  20. bound — tied together
  21. key — for a lock
  22. key — the most important part
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. pop — to visit

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