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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  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. prune — to trim
  3. present — there
  4. present — a gift
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. wound — an injury
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. stand — to bear
  9. prune — to trim
  10. stem — to come from
  11. present — the time now
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. wound — an injury
  17. face — to point toward
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. fan — a supporter
  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