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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. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. lean — to bend
  3. wound — an injury
  4. season — in sport
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. sharp — clever
  9. lean — thin
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. wound — an injury
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. bass — the fish
  15. date — the fruit
  16. wake — a trail
  17. season — of the year
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. bass — low music
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. toast — bread
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. toast — the most admired

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