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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  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. perch — the fish
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. face — to point toward
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. mate — a friend
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. kid — child
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. bat — the animal
  12. mate — to breed
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. press — to push
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. face — part of the head
  17. press — newspapers
  18. stem — to come from
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. kid — to tease
  21. press — a publisher
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. leaves — lets stay
  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