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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. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. race — the arms race
  4. roll — a list
  5. cap — of ice
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. rash — a series
  8. march — the month
  9. race — humankind
  10. march — the month
  11. cap — a lid
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. wound — an injury
  14. rash — hasty
  15. march — music
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. wound — an injury
  19. squash — the sport
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. roll — a cake
  22. squash — to crush
  23. cap — a hat
  24. race — a contest

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