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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: capital · stick · wave · bore · spell · kid · fine · bound

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. fine — high quality
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. bore — to tire
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. bore — to drill
  9. bound — certain
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. bound — obliged
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. spell — a short time
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. bound — tied together
  17. capital — a city
  18. kid — to tease
  19. fine — all right
  20. spell — letters
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. spell — magic
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. capital — money

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