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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. date — the fruit
  3. face — part of the head
  4. wound — an injury
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. bore — to drill
  7. face — to confront
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. bore — to tire
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. roll — a cake
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. wound — an injury
  15. rock — a stone
  16. tube — a container
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. face — to point toward
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. roll — a list
  24. tube — the underground

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