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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  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. present — a gift
  2. staff — a stick
  3. face — to point toward
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. cap — a hat
  7. staff — employees
  8. present — the time now
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. staff — employees
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. present — there
  14. cap — a lid
  15. cap — of ice
  16. cold — not warm
  17. face — to confront
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. face — part of the head
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. mine — for digging
  23. cold — an illness
  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