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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 ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. content — happy
  3. firm — a company
  4. spring — a coil
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. chip — to eat
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. content — the amount
  15. mine — for digging
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. spring — of water
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. chip — for betting
  21. firm — decided
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. spring — the season
  24. firm — steady

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