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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. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. date — the fruit
  3. land — to come down
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. drill — the tool
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. land — a country
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. pound — a weight
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. cap — a lid
  14. kid — to tease
  15. land — ground
  16. drill — army training
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. drill — a practice
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. kid — child
  23. cap — a hat
  24. cap — of ice

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