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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: mug · craft · pit · wound · bat · spell · bear · date

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. mug — to rob
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. pit — in a race
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bear — the animal
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. mug — a cup
  11. spell — letters
  12. bat — the animal
  13. date — the fruit
  14. mug — a face
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. craft — boats
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. spell — a short time
  19. spell — magic
  20. wound — an injury
  21. craft — a skill
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. pit — a hole
  24. wound — an injury

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