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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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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: fork · shower · bound · bat · fall · pit · mate · date

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. fall — to drop
  4. date — the fruit
  5. fork — in a road
  6. shower — to wash
  7. mate — a friend
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. mate — a partner
  11. bound — certain
  12. shower — rain
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. bound — obliged
  15. fall — the season
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bound — tied together
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. pit — a hole
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. mate — to breed
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. fall — to drop

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