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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. suit — to fit
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. craft — boats
  5. game — a match
  6. fall — the season
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bear — the animal
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. craft — a skill
  14. game — wild animals
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. suit — in cards
  17. date — the fruit
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. suit — clothes
  20. cold — not warm
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. cold — an illness
  24. fall — to drop

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