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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. dip — to sink
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. date — the fruit
  5. cold — not warm
  6. mate — a friend
  7. drill — a practice
  8. squash — to crush
  9. can — a tin
  10. can — to be able to
  11. cold — an illness
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. mate — to breed
  14. current — electric
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. can — a tin
  19. mate — a partner
  20. drill — army training
  21. current — happening now
  22. current — of water
  23. squash — the sport
  24. drill — the tool

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