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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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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: prune · face · date · cap · file · jam · lean · pitcher

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. file — a tool
  3. lean — thin
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. file — a line of people
  6. face — to confront
  7. date — the fruit
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. cap — a hat
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. file — a document
  13. lean — to bend
  14. face — part of the head
  15. prune — to trim
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. face — to point toward
  18. cap — a lid
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. cap — of ice
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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