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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: content · date · face · spell · wax · chest

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. content — the amount
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. content — happy
  5. spell — a short time
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. face — to point toward
  8. face — part of the head
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — of your body
  11. spell — letters
  12. wax — to grow
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. spell — magic
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. chest — a box
  17. date — the fruit
  18. face — to confront

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