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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. stock — shares
  3. date — the fruit
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. mate — a partner
  7. mate — to breed
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. race — humankind
  13. race — a contest
  14. stock — goods
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. race — the arms race
  18. cold — an illness
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. cold — not warm
  24. vault — a safe

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