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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. hand — help
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. band — a ring
  8. rash — a series
  9. march — the month
  10. rash — hasty
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. band — a music group
  14. present — there
  15. season — of the year
  16. march — the month
  17. hand — in cards
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. present — a gift
  20. vault — a safe
  21. present — the time now
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. season — in sport
  24. march — music

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