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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. capital — a city
  4. lie — to recline
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. tube — the underground
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. ball — a great time
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. date — the fruit
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. object — an aim
  14. object — a thing
  15. ball — a dance
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. kick — in football
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. branch — a division
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. object — to protest
  23. capital — money
  24. date — on the calendar

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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