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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: bat · date · pitcher · band · kid · foot · lie · tear

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. tear — to rip
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. date — the fruit
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. tear — from crying
  10. band — a music group
  11. kid — child
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. foot — a measure
  17. band — a ring
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. lie — to recline
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. tear — from crying
  24. kid — to tease

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