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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. content — the amount
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. pound — a weight
  5. bank — for money
  6. date — the fruit
  7. season — in sport
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. content — happy
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. cell — in biology
  12. season — of the year
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. bank — for money
  19. bank — of a river
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. cell — a phone
  24. fan — to cool the air

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