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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: kid · last · date · root · lash · cabinet · cell · club

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. kid — child
  3. club — for dancing
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. kid — to tease
  6. root — of a word
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. last — finally
  11. club — a group
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. root — of a plant
  14. cell — in biology
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. root — the cause
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. last — to go on
  19. cell — a phone
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. club — for golf
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. date — the fruit

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