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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. march — the month
  3. march — the month
  4. tear — to rip
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. march — music
  8. tear — from crying
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. tear — from crying
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. spring — of water
  17. spring — a coil
  18. spring — the season

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