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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: branch · net · date · capital · chair · bulb · season · ruler

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. season — of the year
  4. date — the fruit
  5. branch — a division
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bulb — for light
  8. net — for catching
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. net — after costs
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. bulb — for light
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. chair — a leader
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. capital — money
  21. net — in sport
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. season — in sport
  24. 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