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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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. rash — a series
  3. date — the fruit
  4. stem — to come from
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. cap — a hat
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. cap — a lid
  12. rash — hasty
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. stand — to bear
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. kid — to tease
  20. game — a match
  21. game — wild animals
  22. cap — of ice
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. kid — child

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