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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. date — the fruit
  3. capital — money
  4. drill — the tool
  5. wind — moving air
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. net — in sport
  8. wind — moving air
  9. capital — a city
  10. net — after costs
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. drill — a practice
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. drill — army training
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. net — for catching

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