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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: cap · court · craft · wind · wake · pitch · pound · date

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. wind — moving air
  3. court — of a king
  4. craft — a skill
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. wake — a trail
  10. cap — of ice
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. court — for sport
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. cap — a lid
  15. pound — a weight
  16. wind — moving air
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. craft — boats
  19. cap — a hat
  20. date — the fruit
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. pitch — completely
  24. court — of law

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