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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. bound — certain
  3. capital — money
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. chest — of your body
  8. shower — to wash
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. toast — bread
  11. foot — a measure
  12. chest — a box
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. bound — obliged
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. shower — rain
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. bound — tied together
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. capital — a city
  22. chest — of your body
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. date — on the calendar

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