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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. season — of the year
  3. craft — a skill
  4. field — a subject
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. date — the fruit
  7. race — humankind
  8. clip — for paper
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. clip — to cut
  12. capital — money
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. field — farmland
  15. season — in sport
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. clip — a video
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. field — for sport
  21. capital — a city
  22. craft — boats
  23. race — the arms race
  24. race — a contest

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