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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. band — a music group
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. band — a ring
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. row — a line
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. row — to paddle
  11. capital — money
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. bark — to shout
  22. date — the fruit
  23. capital — a city
  24. date — on the calendar

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