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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: club · row · capital · fall · rash · ground · tube · date

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. fall — to drop
  4. capital — money
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. row — a line
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. capital — a city
  10. club — for golf
  11. row — to paddle
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. club — a group
  14. tube — a container
  15. ground — the earth
  16. ground — crushed
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. fall — the season
  19. ground — a position
  20. rash — hasty
  21. tube — the underground
  22. rash — a series
  23. fall — to drop
  24. club — for dancing

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