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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. date — the fruit
  3. prune — to trim
  4. sharp — clever
  5. pound — a weight
  6. capital — a city
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. face — to confront
  11. root — the cause
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. capital — money
  14. mark — a trace
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. mark — a grade
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. prune — to trim
  21. face — to point toward
  22. root — of a plant
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. root — of a word

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