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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.

Make a worksheet

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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. spring — the season
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. game — a match
  5. spring — a coil
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. game — wild animals
  8. branch — a division
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. spring — of water
  14. date — the fruit
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. branch — of a bank

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