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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: wound · hand · calf · stick · mark · date · pass · rule

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. rule — government
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. rule — a law
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. pass — a permit
  9. mark — a grade
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. hand — in cards
  18. mark — a trace
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. wound — an injury
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. wound — an injury
  24. date — the fruit

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