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

Word bank: cap · bank · capital · wind · racket · mate

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. mate — to breed
  3. wind — moving air
  4. capital — a city
  5. capital — money
  6. wind — moving air
  7. cap — a hat
  8. cap — a lid
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. mate — a partner
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. bank — of a river
  13. cap — of ice
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. bank — for money
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. mate — a friend

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