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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: cold · cap · pass · trunk · mate · rock · craft · date

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. rock — a stone
  4. mate — a partner
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. mate — to breed
  9. rock — music
  10. pass — a permit
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. date — the fruit
  14. mate — a friend
  15. cold — an illness
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cap — a hat
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cap — of ice
  21. cap — a lid
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. craft — a skill

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