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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: rock · rest · last · date · bear · craft · object · row

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. date — the fruit
  3. rest — a break
  4. bear — the animal
  5. craft — boats
  6. row — a line
  7. rock — a stone
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. last — to go on
  12. object — to protest
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. object — a thing
  15. last — finally
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. rest — what's left
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. object — an aim
  20. rest — what's left
  21. craft — a skill
  22. row — to paddle
  23. rock — music
  24. bear — the animal

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