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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: wind · date · pit · mate · racket · fork

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. pit — a hole
  4. mate — a partner
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. wind — moving air
  8. fork — in a road
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. mate — a friend
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. mate — to breed
  13. pit — in a race
  14. wind — moving air
  15. date — the fruit
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. date — on the calendar

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