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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. saw — the tool
  3. date — the fruit
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. rush — hurry
  8. dip — to sink
  9. net — after costs
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. craft — boats
  13. last — to go on
  14. net — in sport
  15. fork — in a road
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. last — finally
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. net — for catching
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. saw — the tool
  22. craft — a skill
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. rush — a thrill

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