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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: hand · mouse · toast · face · bay · date · march · band

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. face — to confront
  3. march — the month
  4. face — part of the head
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. march — the month
  7. band — a music group
  8. face — to point toward
  9. toast — bread
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. date — the fruit
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. march — music
  18. band — a ring
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. hand — help
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hand — in cards

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