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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. cold — an illness
  4. firm — steady
  5. cold — not warm
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. date — the fruit
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. root — of a word
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. chair — a leader
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. root — of a plant
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. firm — decided
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. firm — a company
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. root — the cause

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