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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. roll — a cake
  3. content — the amount
  4. perch — the fish
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. content — happy
  10. wound — an injury
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. wound — an injury
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. wake — a trail
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. roll — a list
  24. trunk — of a tree

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