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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: spring · degree · fine · tube · bound · fall · root · capital

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. root — of a word
  3. spring — a coil
  4. fall — to drop
  5. degree — temperature
  6. bound — tied together
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. bound — obliged
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. fine — all right
  11. spring — the season
  12. tube — a container
  13. root — the cause
  14. fine — high quality
  15. degree — an amount
  16. root — of a plant
  17. degree — from a university
  18. fall — the season
  19. capital — money
  20. bound — certain
  21. fall — to drop
  22. tube — the underground
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. spring — of water

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