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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: shower · wave · cap · date · arm · bay · wake · bat

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. cap — a hat
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. bat — the animal
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. shower — to wash
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. date — the fruit
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. cap — a lid
  16. wake — a trail
  17. cap — of ice
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. shower — rain
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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