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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. row — a line
  4. fork — in a road
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. cell — in biology
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. cell — a phone
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. row — to paddle

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