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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. shower — rain
  3. scale — size or range
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. scale — in music
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. date — the fruit
  8. bulb — for light
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. branch — a division
  11. bulb — for light
  12. wake — a trail
  13. pit — in a race
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. pit — a hole
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. shower — to wash

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