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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: mark · lash · mine · date · root · court · race · cell

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. cell — in biology
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. court — of a king
  6. race — a contest
  7. root — of a plant
  8. court — for sport
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. race — humankind
  11. mark — a trace
  12. root — of a word
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. mine — for digging
  16. root — the cause
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. race — the arms race
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. court — of law
  21. cell — a phone
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. mark — a grade

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