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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. cap — of ice
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. face — to point toward
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cold — not warm
  10. date — the fruit
  11. face — part of the head
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. plane — a tool
  16. cap — a lid
  17. prune — to trim
  18. cap — a hat
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. cold — an illness
  21. face — to confront
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. temple — side of the head

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