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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: shower · object · land · cold · board · racket · date · mark

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. mark — a trace
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. object — an aim
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. land — to come down
  7. date — the fruit
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. shower — to wash
  10. object — to protest
  11. object — a thing
  12. land — ground
  13. mark — a grade
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. cold — an illness
  16. shower — rain
  17. board — to get on
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. board — a committee
  22. cold — not warm
  23. land — a country
  24. racket — for tennis

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