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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. present — there
  4. tear — from crying
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. net — after costs
  7. present — a gift
  8. date — the fruit
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. plane — a tool
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. tear — from crying
  14. net — for catching
  15. tear — to rip
  16. mine — for digging
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. squash — to crush
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. net — in sport
  24. squash — the sport

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