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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
468
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: date · bark · capital · mouse · pass · hand · racket · face

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. bark — to shout
  4. face — to confront
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. date — the fruit
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. capital — money
  10. pass — a permit
  11. hand — help
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. capital — a city
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. hand — in cards
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. face — to point toward
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. date — on the calendar

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