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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. last — to go on
  3. date — the fruit
  4. wind — moving air
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. last — final
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. wind — moving air
  10. swing — to play on
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. swing — music
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. row — to paddle
  16. last — finally
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. swing — in golf
  22. row — a line
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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