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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. field — a subject
  10. tube — the underground
  11. date — the fruit
  12. degree — from a university
  13. field — for sport
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. tube — a container
  18. field — farmland
  19. degree — temperature
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. degree — an amount
  22. rash — hasty
  23. rash — a series
  24. rush — hurry

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