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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. date — the fruit
  3. spring — a coil
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. band — a music group
  6. club — for dancing
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. band — a ring
  10. club — for golf
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. snap — to click
  13. cap — a hat
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. cap — of ice
  16. spring — the season
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. spring — of water
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. cap — a lid
  21. dip — to sink
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. club — a group
  24. temple — a place of worship

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