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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. cue — a signal
  5. content — happy
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. staff — employees
  8. cue — for pool
  9. tear — from crying
  10. staff — employees
  11. date — the fruit
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. bark — to shout
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. staff — a stick
  16. pitch — completely
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip
  19. ball — a great time
  20. content — the amount
  21. cue — a hint
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. ball — a dance
  24. pitch — a sports field

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