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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. date — the fruit
  3. face — to point toward
  4. field — a subject
  5. mug — a face
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. field — farmland
  8. rash — hasty
  9. bass — the fish
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. field — for sport
  12. face — part of the head
  13. rock — music
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. face — to confront
  17. mug — to rob
  18. bass — low music
  19. rock — a stone
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. rash — a series
  22. mug — a cup
  23. chair — a leader
  24. chair — a professorship

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