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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. tear — to rip
  3. mug — a cup
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. kid — to tease
  10. snap — to click
  11. kid — child
  12. prune — to trim
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. capital — money
  15. mug — a face
  16. date — the fruit
  17. capital — a city
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — from crying
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. prune — to trim
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. mug — to rob

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