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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: capital · suit · pound · rock · nail · stem · hand · bat

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. capital — a city
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. rock — music
  6. hand — help
  7. pound — a weight
  8. rock — a stone
  9. suit — clothes
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. stem — to come from
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. suit — to fit
  14. suit — in cards
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. hand — in cards
  18. bat — the animal
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. capital — money
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. pound — for dogs

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