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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: season · bank · trunk · board · last · bound · capital · perch

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. bank — for money
  4. capital — money
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. bound — tied together
  8. last — finally
  9. perch — the fish
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. bound — obliged
  12. board — a committee
  13. season — in sport
  14. capital — a city
  15. bound — certain
  16. bank — of a river
  17. board — to get on
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. season — of the year
  22. last — to go on
  23. last — final
  24. bank — for 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