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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 116 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: can · capital · branch · club · cold · pass

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. club — for golf
  3. cold — an illness
  4. club — a group
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. capital — money
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. club — for dancing
  12. cold — not warm
  13. can — a tin
  14. can — to be able to
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. branch — a division
  17. can — a tin
  18. capital — a city

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