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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. club — for golf
  3. dip — to sink
  4. cold — not warm
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. last — to go on
  7. bat — the animal
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. staff — employees
  13. club — a group
  14. staff — employees
  15. club — for dancing
  16. staff — a stick
  17. last — finally
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. last — final
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. date — the fruit

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