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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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Word bank
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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: date · bear · lean · capital · content · spell

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. capital — a city
  3. spell — letters
  4. spell — a short time
  5. bear — the animal
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. content — the amount
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. content — happy
  10. bear — the animal
  11. lean — thin
  12. capital — money
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. spell — magic
  17. date — the fruit
  18. lean — to bend

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