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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 · last · cue · bound · cap · board · stem · capital

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. cap — a lid
  3. bound — certain
  4. capital — a city
  5. board — a committee
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. stem — to come from
  9. bound — obliged
  10. cap — of ice
  11. board — to get on
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. bound — tied together
  15. cue — a hint
  16. cue — for pool
  17. capital — money
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. bark — to shout
  20. last — to go on
  21. cap — a hat
  22. last — finally
  23. last — final
  24. cue — a signal

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