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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 · pitcher · ruler · capital · fork · club

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. club — for golf
  3. date — the fruit
  4. club — a group
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. club — for dancing
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. capital — a city
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. capital — money
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. fork — in a road
  18. pitcher — a jug

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