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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. kid — to tease
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. snap — to click
  7. squash — to crush
  8. current — happening now
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. current — of water
  12. lie — to recline
  13. wind — moving air
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. current — electric
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. band — a ring
  19. wind — moving air
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. squash — the sport
  23. band — a music group
  24. kid — child

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