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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
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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: club · cue · wake · wound · saw · date · capital · dip

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. cue — a hint
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. cue — for pool
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. wound — an injury
  9. capital — money
  10. date — the fruit
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. club — a group
  13. wake — a trail
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. saw — the tool
  16. saw — the tool
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. wound — an injury
  19. cue — a signal
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. club — for dancing
  22. capital — a city
  23. dip — to sink
  24. dip — to dunk

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