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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: march · file · bound · pop · leaves · capital · content · deal

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. pop — soda
  3. pop — to visit
  4. bound — tied together
  5. march — the month
  6. pop — music
  7. file — a tool
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. content — the amount
  10. march — the month
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. content — happy
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. bound — certain
  18. file — a document
  19. bound — obliged
  20. capital — money
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. deal — to handle
  23. capital — a city
  24. march — music

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