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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: toast · prune · bat · march · capital · firm · bulb · track

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. bat — the animal
  4. firm — steady
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. prune — to trim
  7. march — the month
  8. track — to keep track
  9. march — the month
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. capital — money
  14. capital — a city
  15. bulb — for light
  16. bulb — for light
  17. march — music
  18. track — a song
  19. prune — to trim
  20. firm — a company
  21. firm — decided
  22. track — a path
  23. toast — bread
  24. bulb — 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