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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: drill · bound · wound · row · cabinet · season · nail · capital

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. bound — certain
  5. wound — an injury
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. bound — tied together
  8. row — to paddle
  9. season — of the year
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. drill — army training
  13. row — a line
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. drill — the tool
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. bound — obliged
  18. wound — an injury
  19. drill — a practice
  20. capital — a city
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. season — in sport
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. nail — on a finger

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