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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. date — the fruit
  7. pop — soda
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. row — to paddle
  11. game — a match
  12. game — wild animals
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. tear — to rip
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. tear — from crying
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. mark — a trace
  20. row — a line
  21. pop — to visit
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. tear — from crying
  24. mark — a grade

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