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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. key — for a lock
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. capital — money
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. date — the fruit
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. cap — of ice
  9. key — in music
  10. root — of a word
  11. mate — to breed
  12. root — of a plant
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. rock — music
  16. root — the cause
  17. mate — a friend
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. rock — a stone
  20. key — the most important part
  21. mate — a partner
  22. cap — a lid
  23. capital — a city
  24. cap — a hat

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