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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. rash — hasty
  4. game — a match
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. scale — in music
  8. game — wild animals
  9. present — the time now
  10. bass — the fish
  11. present — there
  12. bass — low music
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. mate — a friend
  16. scale — size or range
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. rash — a series
  19. rush — hurry
  20. mate — a partner
  21. date — the fruit
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. mate — to breed

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