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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: current · tube · date · tear · dip · straw · can · saw

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. current — of water
  6. tear — from crying
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. tube — a container
  11. current — electric
  12. saw — the tool
  13. can — a tin
  14. current — happening now
  15. tube — the underground
  16. dip — to sink
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. can — a tin
  19. tear — from crying
  20. can — to be able to
  21. tear — to rip
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. saw — the tool
  24. straw — dry grass

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