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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. cap — of ice
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. bass — the fish
  5. spring — the season
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. band — a music group
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — an injury
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. spring — a coil
  13. date — the fruit
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. suit — clothes
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. cap — a hat
  18. spring — of water
  19. band — a ring
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. suit — in cards
  22. cap — a lid
  23. suit — to fit
  24. bass — low music

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