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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: coach · row · content · bank · lean · spring · stock · capital

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. capital — money
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. bank — of a river
  7. lean — thin
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. stock — shares
  10. row — a line
  11. row — to paddle
  12. bank — for money
  13. spring — a coil
  14. capital — a city
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. bank — for money
  17. spring — of water
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. stock — goods
  22. spring — the season
  23. lean — to bend
  24. content — happy

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