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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. date — the fruit
  3. row — to paddle
  4. band — a ring
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. bound — tied together
  7. tear — to rip
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. wind — moving air
  13. bound — obliged
  14. tear — from crying
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. row — a line
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. wind — moving air
  20. tear — from crying
  21. band — a music group
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. pitcher — a jug

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