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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. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. spring — the season
  3. capital — money
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. spring — a coil
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. cell — a phone
  9. bank — for money
  10. spring — of water
  11. chest — a box
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. chip — to eat
  14. bank — for money
  15. chest — of your body
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. date — the fruit
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. capital — a city
  20. bank — of a river
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. chip — for betting

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