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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. pit — a hole
  3. rest — a break
  4. season — in sport
  5. season — of the year
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. bound — obliged
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. pit — in a race
  11. face — to point toward
  12. clip — for paper
  13. rest — what's left
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. bound — certain
  16. rest — what's left
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. stem — to come from
  19. bound — tied together
  20. face — part of the head
  21. face — to confront
  22. clip — to cut
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. clip — a video

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