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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: current · cold · hand · date · cabinet · spring · bowl · pop

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. cold — not warm
  4. current — electric
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. spring — a coil
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. current — of water
  11. hand — in cards
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. current — happening now
  14. pop — music
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. date — the fruit
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. spring — of water
  21. spring — the season
  22. cold — an illness
  23. pop — to visit
  24. hand — help

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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