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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. tear — from crying
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. rock — music
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. game — a match
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. tear — from crying
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. present — the time now
  11. perch — the fish
  12. scale — size or range
  13. game — wild animals
  14. bore — to drill
  15. bore — to tire
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. tear — to rip
  19. rock — a stone
  20. present — there
  21. date — the fruit
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. scale — in music
  24. present — a gift

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