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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 116 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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. clip — for paper
  4. mate — to breed
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. clip — a video
  9. clip — to cut
  10. face — to point toward
  11. perch — the fish
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. mate — a friend
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. face — part of the head
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. suit — in cards
  19. suit — to fit
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. suit — clothes
  22. chair — a leader
  23. stem — to come from
  24. mate — a partner

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