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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. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. ground — the earth
  4. pop — music
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. file — a line of people
  7. date — the fruit
  8. clip — to cut
  9. ground — crushed
  10. file — a tool
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. pop — to visit
  13. pop — soda
  14. file — a document
  15. ball — a great time
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. ground — a position
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. clip — for paper
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. ball — a dance
  22. clip — a video
  23. pound — a weight
  24. pound — for dogs

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