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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. content — the amount
  3. shower — to wash
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. perch — the fish
  9. shower — rain
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. kid — child
  12. kid — to tease
  13. dip — to sink
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. bore — to tire
  16. bore — to drill
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. date — the fruit
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. content — happy
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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