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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 · march · leaves · bound · firm · game · swing · cold

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. capital — a city
  4. game — a match
  5. march — the month
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. game — wild animals
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cold — an illness
  12. bound — certain
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. firm — steady
  15. swing — in golf
  16. march — the month
  17. swing — music
  18. firm — decided
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. bound — obliged
  21. march — music
  22. swing — to play on
  23. firm — a company
  24. capital — money

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