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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: present · plane · date · club · tear · court · wake · nail

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. club — for golf
  3. present — a gift
  4. court — for sport
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. court — of law
  10. court — of a king
  11. tear — from crying
  12. wake — a trail
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. plane — a tool
  15. present — the time now
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. date — the fruit
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. club — a group
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tear — to rip
  24. present — there

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