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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. kid — to tease
  3. spell — letters
  4. kid — child
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. object — to protest
  10. bat — the animal
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. object — a thing
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. fork — in a road
  16. spell — magic
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. object — an aim
  19. pass — a permit
  20. date — the fruit
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. spell — a short time
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. leaves — lets stay

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