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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. game — wild animals
  4. pit — a hole
  5. date — the fruit
  6. tube — the underground
  7. bat — the animal
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. saw — the tool
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. tube — a container
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. pit — in a race
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. lean — thin
  19. saw — the tool
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. lean — to bend
  24. game — a match

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