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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. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. mug — a cup
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. degree — an amount
  6. mug — to rob
  7. mug — a face
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. capital — a city
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. bank — for money
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. degree — temperature
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. date — the fruit
  17. degree — from a university
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. mine — for digging
  20. capital — money
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. bank — of a river
  23. kick — in football
  24. capital — a big letter

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