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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. date — the fruit
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. stem — to come from
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. fork — in a road
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. bat — the animal
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. date — on the calendar

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