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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: perch · bat · season · date · wax · nail · content · mate

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. bat — the animal
  5. mate — to breed
  6. content — the amount
  7. mate — a partner
  8. wax — to grow
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. content — happy
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. perch — the fish
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. season — of the year
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. date — the fruit
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. season — in sport
  24. mate — a friend

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