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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. march — the month
  5. court — for sport
  6. craft — boats
  7. kid — child
  8. date — the fruit
  9. row — to paddle
  10. craft — a skill
  11. staff — employees
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. staff — employees
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. march — music
  16. march — the month
  17. court — of a king
  18. kid — to tease
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. staff — a stick
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. court — of law

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