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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. land — a country
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. bound — tied together
  6. land — to come down
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. mate — to breed
  9. bound — certain
  10. land — ground
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. fork — in a road
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. wax — to grow
  15. date — the fruit
  16. mate — a friend
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. bound — obliged
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. mate — a partner
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — moving air
  24. fork — to eat with

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