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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: chair · arm · stand · season · last · row · date · pit

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. last — to go on
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. last — finally
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. last — final
  9. row — a line
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. date — the fruit
  14. row — to paddle
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. stand — to bear
  19. pit — a hole
  20. chair — a leader
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. pit — in a race
  23. season — in sport
  24. season — of the year

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