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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: tear · arm · present · swing · date · current · staff · field

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. present — a gift
  3. staff — a stick
  4. tear — from crying
  5. tear — to rip
  6. swing — in golf
  7. tear — from crying
  8. field — for sport
  9. staff — employees
  10. field — a subject
  11. present — the time now
  12. current — of water
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. field — farmland
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. current — electric
  18. swing — to play on
  19. swing — music
  20. staff — employees
  21. present — there
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. current — happening now
  24. arm — a part of something

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