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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. date — the fruit
  3. march — music
  4. spell — magic
  5. pit — in a race
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. rule — a law
  8. pit — a hole
  9. march — the month
  10. cell — a phone
  11. rash — hasty
  12. spell — letters
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. cell — in biology
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. board — to get on
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. board — a committee
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rule — government
  22. spell — a short time
  23. rash — a series
  24. march — the month

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