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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. field — a subject
  3. pass — a permit
  4. bat — the animal
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. date — the fruit
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. club — for dancing
  10. fine — all right
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. club — for golf
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. field — farmland
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. field — for sport
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. rash — a series
  23. club — a group
  24. rash — hasty

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