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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. row — to paddle
  4. face — to confront
  5. date — the fruit
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. mate — a partner
  11. cell — in biology
  12. cell — a phone
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. row — a line
  15. face — part of the head
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. face — to point toward
  18. band — a ring
  19. bass — low music
  20. mate — a friend
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. mate — to breed
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. bass — the fish

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