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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. David sat on the ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. swing — to play on
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. date — the fruit
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. squash — to crush
  8. swing — music
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. squash — the sport
  11. rush — hurry
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. stock — shares
  15. race — a contest
  16. stock — goods
  17. perch — the fish
  18. race — the arms race
  19. swing — in golf
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. race — humankind

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