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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. date — the fruit
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. net — after costs
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. root — the cause
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. cell — in biology
  11. drill — army training
  12. dip — to sink
  13. net — in sport
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. pit — in a race
  16. net — for catching
  17. pit — a hole
  18. cell — a phone
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. root — of a word
  21. drill — a practice
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. root — of a plant

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