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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 120 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 · bark · land · bound · fork · cue · net · ball

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. cue — a signal
  3. fork — in a road
  4. bound — tied together
  5. net — in sport
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. net — after costs
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. land — a country
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. bound — obliged
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. capital — a city
  14. land — ground
  15. ball — a great time
  16. bound — certain
  17. cue — for pool
  18. bark — to shout
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. cue — a hint
  21. net — for catching
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. ball — a dance
  24. land — to come down

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