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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. present — the time now
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. stem — to come from
  8. branch — a division
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. present — there
  11. game — wild animals
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. bore — to tire
  17. game — a match
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. bore — to drill
  21. present — a gift
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. capital — 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