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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. mate — to breed
  6. branch — a division
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. march — the month
  10. wind — moving air
  11. date — the fruit
  12. mate — a friend
  13. wind — moving air
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. mate — a partner
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. march — music
  18. march — the month

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