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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. date — the fruit
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. capital — money
  5. band — a music group
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. wake — a trail
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. branch — a division
  14. craft — a skill
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. band — a ring
  17. craft — boats
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. capital — a city
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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