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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: cap · firm · last · spring · pitch · date · race · season

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  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. date — on the calendar
  2. spring — the season
  3. firm — steady
  4. last — final
  5. race — humankind
  6. season — in sport
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. last — finally
  10. firm — decided
  11. race — the arms race
  12. pitch — completely
  13. firm — a company
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. last — to go on
  16. cap — a lid
  17. season — of the year
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. race — a contest
  20. cap — a hat
  21. spring — a coil
  22. cap — of ice
  23. spring — of water
  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