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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 120 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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: coach · temple · fork · capital · kid · present

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. present — a gift
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. kid — to tease
  6. present — the time now
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. kid — child
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. capital — a city
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. capital — money
  17. fork — in a road
  18. present — there

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