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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.

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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: fork · band · capital · bound · snap · can · rule · field

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. can — a tin
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. field — for sport
  6. field — farmland
  7. rule — a law
  8. fork — in a road
  9. capital — money
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. can — to be able to
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. band — a music group
  15. band — a ring
  16. bound — tied together
  17. snap — to click
  18. rule — government
  19. bound — certain
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. capital — a city
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. can — a tin
  24. field — a subject

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