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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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Word bank
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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: straw · nail · cell · date · tear · fork

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. date — the fruit
  3. cell — a phone
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. cell — in biology
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. tear — from crying
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. fork — in a road
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. tear — from crying
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. tear — to rip

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