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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. rash — a series
  3. date — the fruit
  4. foot — a measure
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. bat — the animal
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. hand — in cards
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. kid — to tease
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. rash — hasty
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. hand — help
  16. kid — child
  17. kick — in football
  18. season — of the year
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. season — in sport
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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