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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 second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. mate — a partner
  3. mate — to breed
  4. march — the month
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. can — a tin
  8. bass — the fish
  9. march — music
  10. bass — low music
  11. march — the month
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. capital — a city
  15. can — a tin
  16. can — to be able to
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. lean — to bend
  20. lean — thin
  21. mate — a friend
  22. fork — in a road
  23. date — the fruit
  24. bass — the instrument

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