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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. kid — child
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. craft — a skill
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. current — electric
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. current — of water
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. spell — letters
  13. pit — a hole
  14. saw — the tool
  15. saw — the tool
  16. spell — a short time
  17. craft — boats
  18. game — wild animals
  19. pit — in a race
  20. current — happening now
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. spell — magic
  23. game — a match
  24. kid — to tease

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