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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: date · cap · season · trunk · deal · court · cabinet · tear

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. cap — a lid
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. tear — to rip
  5. season — in sport
  6. court — of law
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. tear — from crying
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. cap — a hat
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. court — for sport
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. deal — to handle
  20. cap — of ice
  21. court — of a king
  22. date — the fruit
  23. tear — from crying
  24. season — of the year

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