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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. bound — tied together
  3. club — for dancing
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. club — for golf
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. club — a group
  13. stock — shares
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. stock — goods
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. pass — a permit
  20. date — the fruit
  21. capital — money
  22. bound — certain
  23. capital — a city
  24. bound — obliged

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