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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. present — the time now
  3. craft — boats
  4. roll — a cake
  5. chest — a box
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. fine — high quality
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. swing — to play on
  14. present — there
  15. craft — a skill
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. present — a gift
  18. fine — all right
  19. roll — a list
  20. band — a ring
  21. band — a music group
  22. date — the fruit
  23. swing — in golf
  24. swing — music

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