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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've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. bank — for money
  3. chair — a leader
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. capital — a city
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. stock — goods
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. stock — shares
  11. capital — money
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. date — the fruit
  14. bore — to drill
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. bank — for money
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. bore — to tire
  23. bank — of a river
  24. vault — a safe

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