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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. tear — to rip
  3. prune — to trim
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. date — the fruit
  8. cell — in biology
  9. prune — to trim
  10. tear — from crying
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. tear — from crying
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. lie — to recline
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. fork — in a road
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. ruler — for measuring

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