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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: dip · date · object · perch · track · cold · face · content

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. track — a song
  3. perch — the fish
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. face — to point toward
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. content — the amount
  10. track — to keep track
  11. object — an aim
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. object — a thing
  15. cold — an illness
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. date — the fruit
  18. content — happy
  19. track — a path
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. dip — to sink
  22. cold — not warm
  23. object — to protest
  24. face — part of the head

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