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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: cue · date · bore · straw · tear · land · bat · march

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. tear — to rip
  3. march — the month
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bore — to drill
  7. cue — for pool
  8. march — the month
  9. date — the fruit
  10. tear — from crying
  11. land — ground
  12. land — a country
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. cue — a signal
  18. tear — from crying
  19. land — to come down
  20. bore — to tire
  21. march — music
  22. cue — a hint
  23. bat — the animal
  24. date — on the calendar

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