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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. wound — an injury
  3. rest — what's left
  4. tear — to rip
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. rest — what's left
  9. tear — from crying
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. rest — a break
  15. wound — an injury
  16. deal — to handle
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. pitch — completely
  19. bat — the animal
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. tear — from crying
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. bat — for baseball

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