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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: toast · date · craft · mate · stick · chair · roll · dip

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. roll — a cake
  4. mate — to breed
  5. dip — to sink
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. mate — a partner
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. roll — a list
  13. date — the fruit
  14. toast — bread
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. craft — a skill
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. chair — a leader
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. mate — a friend
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. craft — boats
  24. roll — on a roll

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