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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 little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. date — the fruit
  5. mate — a partner
  6. hand — help
  7. rock — a stone
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. mate — a friend
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. bear — the animal
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. cold — an illness
  14. mate — to breed
  15. game — a match
  16. game — wild animals
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. rock — music
  22. cold — not warm
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. hand — in cards

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