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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. perch — the fish
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. face — to point toward
  5. scale — in music
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. root — of a word
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. season — of the year
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. face — to confront
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. stem — to come from
  14. scale — size or range
  15. root — the cause
  16. face — part of the head
  17. season — in sport
  18. root — of a plant

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