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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: deal · rule · land · date · rest · tear

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. rule — a law
  3. rule — government
  4. tear — from crying
  5. rest — what's left
  6. date — the fruit
  7. rest — what's left
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. tear — to rip
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. rest — a break
  12. land — to come down
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. land — ground
  15. deal — to handle
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. tear — from crying
  18. land — a country

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