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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 120 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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. pop — soda
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. ground — a position
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. pit — a hole
  9. pitch — completely
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. ground — the earth
  14. pop — to visit
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. ground — crushed
  17. pit — in a race
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. pop — music
  21. face — part of the head
  22. bear — the animal
  23. face — to point toward
  24. perch — the fish

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