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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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Word bank
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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: ball · squash · date · kick · key · last · cap · court

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. kick — in football
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — final
  5. squash — the sport
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. cap — of ice
  8. court — for sport
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. cap — a lid
  13. date — the fruit
  14. squash — to crush
  15. ball — a dance
  16. key — for a lock
  17. court — of law
  18. cap — a hat
  19. ball — a great time
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. key — the most important part
  22. last — finally
  23. court — of a king
  24. key — in music

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