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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. can — a tin
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. present — the time now
  5. date — the fruit
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. can — to be able to
  10. can — a tin
  11. present — a gift
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. cold — not warm
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. cold — an illness
  19. fork — in a road
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. fork — a garden tool

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