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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: trunk · stock · club · temple · capital · march · date · leaves

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. capital — a city
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. march — the month
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. club — for golf
  13. date — the fruit
  14. stock — goods
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. club — a group
  17. club — for dancing
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. march — music
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. march — the month
  22. stock — shares
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. capital — money

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