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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: mate · capital · date · last · root · nail · leaves · march

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. mate — a friend
  4. capital — a city
  5. last — finally
  6. march — the month
  7. march — music
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. root — of a plant
  10. last — final
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. date — the fruit
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. march — the month
  18. root — the cause
  19. root — of a word
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. mate — a partner
  22. mate — to breed
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. last — to go on

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