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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. land — to come down
  4. date — the fruit
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. row — a line
  7. spell — magic
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bat — the animal
  10. spell — letters
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. rule — government
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. rule — a law
  17. spell — a short time
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. land — ground
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. lie — to recline
  24. land — a country

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