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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. face — part of the head
  4. saw — the tool
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. fork — in a road
  7. face — to point toward
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. date — the fruit
  10. track — a path
  11. staff — employees
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. staff — a stick
  16. saw — the tool
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. track — a song
  20. track — to keep track
  21. staff — employees
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. patient — a sick person
  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