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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. date — the fruit
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. kid — child
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. bore — to drill
  14. kid — to tease
  15. rest — what's left
  16. bore — to tire
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. wound — an injury
  19. rest — a break
  20. capital — a city
  21. wound — an injury
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. rest — what's left

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