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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. cold — an illness
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. bank — of a river
  5. net — after costs
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. band — a ring
  11. net — for catching
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. key — the most important part
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. cold — not warm
  17. net — in sport
  18. key — in music
  19. key — for a lock
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. band — a music group
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. bank — for money
  24. bank — for money

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