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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. tube — a container
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. row — a line
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. cell — a phone
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. tube — the underground
  11. rule — a law
  12. row — to paddle
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. rule — government
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. wax — to grow
  21. cell — in biology
  22. firm — decided
  23. firm — steady
  24. firm — a company

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