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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 ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. march — the month
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. march — music
  7. race — humankind
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. capital — a city
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. sharp — clever
  13. swing — to play on
  14. race — the arms race
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. race — a contest
  18. march — the month
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. swing — music
  21. swing — in golf
  22. capital — money
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. sharp — with an edge

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