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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  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. last — finally
  2. face — to point toward
  3. fall — the season
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. cap — a hat
  7. fall — to drop
  8. prune — to trim
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. fall — to drop
  11. last — to go on
  12. date — the fruit
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. face — part of the head
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. cap — of ice
  19. prune — to trim
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. cap — a lid
  22. last — final
  23. face — to confront
  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