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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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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: mate · kick · stock · jam · date · suit · can · cold

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. mate — a friend
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. mate — to breed
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. kick — in football
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. suit — to fit
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. mate — a partner
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. can — a tin
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. suit — in cards
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. suit — clothes
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. can — to be able to
  21. stock — goods
  22. stock — shares
  23. cold — not warm
  24. date — the fruit

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