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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. spring — the season
  5. cap — of ice
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. rash — hasty
  8. fall — the season
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. spring — of water
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. cap — a hat
  14. cap — a lid
  15. pit — a hole
  16. rash — a series
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. date — the fruit
  20. spring — a coil
  21. pit — in a race
  22. fall — to drop
  23. fall — to drop
  24. lash — to lash out

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