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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: bore · track · bay · wind · capital · coach · last · content

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. last — finally
  3. track — to keep track
  4. last — final
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. track — a song
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. track — a path
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. capital — a city
  13. last — to go on
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. content — happy
  17. content — the amount
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. bore — to drill
  22. bore — to tire
  23. wind — moving air
  24. content — videos and posts

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