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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. toast — bread
  3. drill — a practice
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. cue — a hint
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. drill — the tool
  10. lie — to recline
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. kid — child
  13. cue — for pool
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. mine — for digging
  16. cue — a signal
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. kid — to tease
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. date — the fruit
  21. chair — a leader
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. drill — army training
  24. mine — belonging to me

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