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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: date · pit · pass · last · bowl · court · temple · jam

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. pit — a hole
  6. last — finally
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. last — to go on
  11. court — for sport
  12. date — the fruit
  13. court — of law
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. pit — in a race
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. pass — a permit
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. court — of a king
  24. last — final

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