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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: date · rest · squash · cold · object · pit

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cold — not warm
  4. object — a thing
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. date — the fruit
  7. rest — what's left
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. pit — in a race
  10. rest — a break
  11. object — to protest
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. squash — to crush
  14. squash — the sport
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. rest — what's left
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. pit — a hole

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