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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: nail · club · fork · bat · leaves · race · capital · date

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. club — a group
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. race — the arms race
  9. race — a contest
  10. club — for golf
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. fork — in a road
  15. race — humankind
  16. bat — the animal
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. club — for dancing
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. date — the fruit
  21. capital — money
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. capital — a city

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