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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: kid · capital · dip · rule · bulb · pound · net · track

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. rule — government
  4. dip — to sink
  5. capital — a city
  6. kid — child
  7. capital — money
  8. pound — a weight
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. net — in sport
  11. kid — to tease
  12. bulb — for light
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. net — after costs
  16. bulb — for light
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. net — for catching
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. track — a path
  23. track — to keep track
  24. track — a song

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