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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. season — of the year
  3. season — in sport
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. face — to point toward
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. date — the fruit
  10. capital — a city
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. pass — a permit
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. capital — money
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. wake — a trail
  21. face — part of the head
  22. perch — the fish
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. face — to confront

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