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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. capital — a city
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. capital — money
  6. fork — in a road
  7. firm — a company
  8. firm — steady
  9. wound — an injury
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. deal — to handle
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. date — the fruit
  19. firm — decided
  20. wound — an injury
  21. content — the amount
  22. content — happy
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. content — videos and posts

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