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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. hand — in cards
  3. shower — to wash
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. march — the month
  7. shower — rain
  8. staff — employees
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. march — the month
  13. date — the fruit
  14. march — music
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. staff — a stick
  19. staff — employees
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. hand — help
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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