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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. track — a song
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. spell — letters
  8. face — to point toward
  9. stem — to come from
  10. face — to confront
  11. date — the fruit
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. track — to keep track
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. track — a path
  18. face — part of the head
  19. cap — of ice
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. wake — a trail
  22. cap — a hat
  23. spell — a short time
  24. spell — magic

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