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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: hide · pass · cabinet · band · mine · cold · date · arm

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. mine — for digging
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. band — a music group
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. pass — a permit
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. cold — an illness
  20. band — a ring
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. cabinet — ministers

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