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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. row — a line
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. plane — a tool
  5. root — of a plant
  6. root — of a word
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. club — for dancing
  9. wound — an injury
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. row — to paddle
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. wound — an injury
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. bat — the animal
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. root — the cause
  19. club — a group
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. club — for golf
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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