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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 116 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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. face — to confront
  4. face — to point toward
  5. pass — a permit
  6. content — the amount
  7. bark — to shout
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. face — part of the head
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. content — happy
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. plane — a tool
  16. season — in sport
  17. season — of the year
  18. plane — in geometry

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