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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: capital · jam · cue · fork · bulb · leaves · chest · date

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bulb — for light
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. cue — for pool
  10. date — the fruit
  11. chest — a box
  12. capital — money
  13. capital — a city
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bulb — for light
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. cue — a signal
  21. fork — in a road
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. chest — of your body

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