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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. file — a line of people
  3. toast — bread
  4. tear — from crying
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. row — to paddle
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. tear — from crying
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. squash — the sport
  13. file — a document
  14. tear — to rip
  15. capital — money
  16. squash — to crush
  17. capital — a city
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. date — the fruit
  20. row — a line
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. file — a tool
  24. fan — to cool the air

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