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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. spring — a coil
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. staff — a stick
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. swing — in golf
  9. tear — from crying
  10. date — the fruit
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. spring — of water
  13. tear — from crying
  14. swing — to play on
  15. spring — the season
  16. foot — a measure
  17. swing — music
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. staff — employees
  20. tear — to rip
  21. staff — employees
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. hand — help

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