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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. date — the fruit
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. chip — to eat
  5. scale — in music
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. plane — a tool
  8. band — a ring
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. rush — hurry
  15. mate — to breed
  16. mate — a friend
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. mate — a partner
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. scale — size or range
  22. kid — child
  23. chip — for betting
  24. band — a music group

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