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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. file — a line of people
  3. file — a tool
  4. cell — a phone
  5. capital — a city
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. date — the fruit
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. bank — for money
  10. cell — in biology
  11. vault — a safe
  12. bank — of a river
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. bank — for money
  17. file — a document
  18. capital — money
  19. bulb — for light
  20. wound — an injury
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. bulb — for light

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