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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: present · date · current · craft · pop · cue · drill · cold

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. current — of water
  3. drill — the tool
  4. present — there
  5. present — a gift
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. cold — not warm
  8. date — the fruit
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. craft — a skill
  11. cold — an illness
  12. pop — music
  13. drill — army training
  14. current — electric
  15. drill — a practice
  16. pop — to visit
  17. cue — a signal
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cue — for pool
  20. cue — a hint
  21. current — happening now
  22. craft — boats
  23. present — the time now
  24. date — on the calendar

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