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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: mine · bay · bound · rush · field · club · perch · capital

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. club — for golf
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. mine — for digging
  5. bound — certain
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. club — a group
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. rush — hurry
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bound — tied together
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. club — for dancing
  15. field — farmland
  16. bound — obliged
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. perch — the fish
  20. capital — money
  21. field — for sport
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. capital — a city
  24. field — a subject

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