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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. press — to push
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. date — the fruit
  5. dip — to sink
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. last — to go on
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. kid — child
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. game — wild animals
  12. press — a publisher
  13. hand — in cards
  14. last — final
  15. last — finally
  16. hand — help
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. game — a match
  23. kid — to tease
  24. press — newspapers

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