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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: foot · leaves · capital · sharp · mate · land · bark · cue

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. capital — money
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. cue — a hint
  7. land — to come down
  8. land — a country
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. sharp — clever
  11. bark — to shout
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. mate — to breed
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. land — ground
  17. foot — a measure
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. cue — a signal
  21. mate — a friend
  22. capital — a city
  23. cue — for pool
  24. mate — a partner

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