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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: bark · coach · ground · bore · capital · pass · can · season

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. season — of the year
  4. bark — to shout
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. can — a tin
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. can — to be able to
  11. can — a tin
  12. ground — the earth
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. ground — crushed
  16. pass — a permit
  17. bore — to tire
  18. capital — a city
  19. capital — money
  20. season — in sport
  21. bore — to drill
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. ground — a position

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