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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: chair · date · mug · bowl · last · bay · mine · snap

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. last — finally
  3. date — the fruit
  4. mug — a cup
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. last — to go on
  7. mug — to rob
  8. mine — for digging
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. mug — a face
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. last — final
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. snap — to click
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. chair — a leader
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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