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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: press · craft · bat · firm · ground · date · last · club

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. bat — the animal
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — final
  7. firm — steady
  8. press — to push
  9. club — for golf
  10. ground — the earth
  11. press — a publisher
  12. last — finally
  13. date — the fruit
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. ground — crushed
  16. club — a group
  17. craft — boats
  18. press — newspapers
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. club — for dancing
  21. ground — a position
  22. craft — a skill
  23. firm — a company
  24. firm — decided

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