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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. last — final
  3. date — the fruit
  4. hand — in cards
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. bound — certain
  9. spring — a coil
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. vault — a safe
  12. bound — tied together
  13. board — a committee
  14. last — to go on
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. stand — to bear
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. spring — the season
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. spring — of water
  21. hand — help
  22. bound — obliged
  23. board — to get on
  24. last — finally

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