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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. tear — from crying
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. can — to be able to
  6. pop — to visit
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. bound — tied together
  10. can — a tin
  11. can — a tin
  12. bound — obliged
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. pop — soda
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. tear — to rip
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. tear — from crying
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. pop — music
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. bound — certain

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