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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: fall · squash · chest · perch · date · nail · tube · pit

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. date — the fruit
  3. chest — of your body
  4. squash — to crush
  5. pit — a hole
  6. chest — a box
  7. perch — the fish
  8. tube — the underground
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. fall — the season
  11. tube — a container
  12. pit — in a race
  13. chest — of your body
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. fall — to drop
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. fall — to drop
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. squash — the sport
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. nail — on a finger

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