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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. press — to push
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. season — of the year
  6. press — a publisher
  7. last — final
  8. lie — to recline
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. rash — a series
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. last — to go on
  15. season — in sport
  16. rash — hasty
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. wind — moving air
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. wind — moving air
  21. date — the fruit
  22. press — newspapers
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. last — finally

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