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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. face — to confront
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. face — to point toward
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. content — the amount
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chair — a leader
  11. face — part of the head
  12. ball — a dance
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. branch — a division
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. content — happy
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. ball — a great time

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