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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. date — the fruit
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. face — to point toward
  6. pop — soda
  7. face — part of the head
  8. cap — a lid
  9. file — a line of people
  10. fall — to drop
  11. court — of a king
  12. file — a tool
  13. court — of law
  14. file — a document
  15. pop — to visit
  16. face — to confront
  17. fall — to drop
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. cap — a hat
  20. court — for sport
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. cap — of ice
  23. fall — the season
  24. pop — music

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