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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 newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. charge — a price
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. shower — rain
  7. present — a gift
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. kid — to tease
  10. march — the month
  11. date — the fruit
  12. clip — a video
  13. march — music
  14. foot — a measure
  15. charge — electricity
  16. present — the time now
  17. present — there
  18. shower — to wash
  19. march — the month
  20. kid — child
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. charge — in control
  23. clip — to cut
  24. clip — for paper

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