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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. court — for sport
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. court — of a king
  7. date — the fruit
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. stock — shares
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. season — in sport
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. court — of law
  15. stock — goods
  16. season — of the year
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. toast — bread
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. dip — to sink
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. date — on the calendar

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