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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. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. bat — the animal
  3. stem — to come from
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. kick — in football
  6. clip — for paper
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. clip — to cut
  10. mark — a trace
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. clip — a video
  13. wax — to grow
  14. vault — a safe
  15. date — the fruit
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. mark — a grade
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. wax — for sculpting

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