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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'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. cue — a hint
  3. fall — to drop
  4. date — the fruit
  5. snap — to click
  6. scale — size or range
  7. cue — for pool
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. scale — in music
  10. cue — a signal
  11. bulb — for light
  12. fall — to drop
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. bulb — for light
  16. squash — to crush
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. bat — the animal
  20. fall — the season
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. squash — the sport
  24. scale — for weighing

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