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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. saw — the tool
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. date — the fruit
  6. tear — to rip
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. land — a country
  10. craft — boats
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. tube — the underground
  13. tear — from crying
  14. land — ground
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. craft — a skill
  17. tube — a container
  18. land — to come down
  19. rash — hasty
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. saw — the tool
  24. rash — a series

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