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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. land — ground
  3. key — the most important part
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. prune — to trim
  7. foot — a measure
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. degree — an amount
  10. degree — temperature
  11. land — to come down
  12. face — to confront
  13. land — a country
  14. date — the fruit
  15. prune — to trim
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. degree — from a university
  18. pass — a permit
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. key — in music
  21. face — to point toward
  22. key — for a lock
  23. face — part of the head
  24. foot — the bottom

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