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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. game — a match
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. bank — for money
  6. hand — help
  7. rock — music
  8. row — a line
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. hand — in cards
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. rock — a stone
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. date — the fruit
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. game — wild animals
  18. capital — a city
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. capital — money
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. row — to paddle
  24. bank — for money

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