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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. capital — money
  7. spell — a short time
  8. capital — a city
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. scale — in music
  11. spell — letters
  12. spell — magic
  13. wake — a trail
  14. roll — a list
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — to trim
  17. roll — a cake
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. bore — to drill
  21. bore — to tire
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. date — the fruit

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