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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. charge — electricity
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. bat — the animal
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. shower — to wash
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. cue — a hint
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. sharp — clever
  14. charge — in control
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. hand — in cards
  17. cue — a signal
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. charge — a price
  21. cue — for pool
  22. shower — rain
  23. hand — help
  24. leaves — lets stay

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