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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: rash · toast · capital · lash · date · bowl · stem · spring

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. date — the fruit
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. capital — a city
  7. spring — of water
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. stem — to come from
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. capital — money
  19. spring — a coil
  20. spring — the season
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. rash — a series
  23. toast — bread
  24. stem — of a plant

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