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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: stand · capital · pound · track · face · present · spring · bore

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. spring — a coil
  3. face — part of the head
  4. present — a gift
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. track — a song
  7. face — to confront
  8. spring — the season
  9. track — to keep track
  10. capital — money
  11. bore — to tire
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. present — there
  15. present — the time now
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. face — to point toward
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. spring — of water
  20. capital — a city
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. stand — to bear
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. bore — to drill

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