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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: capital · lean · date · fall · last · deal · pound · march

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. march — the month
  4. march — music
  5. pound — a weight
  6. march — the month
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. date — the fruit
  9. capital — money
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. deal — to handle
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — a city
  14. fall — to drop
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. last — to go on
  17. fall — to drop
  18. lean — to bend
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. lean — thin
  21. last — final
  22. last — finally
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. fall — the season

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