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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. clip — to cut
  3. degree — from a university
  4. face — to point toward
  5. fall — to drop
  6. root — of a plant
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. face — to confront
  9. pitch — completely
  10. bark — to shout
  11. face — part of the head
  12. clip — for paper
  13. root — the cause
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. degree — temperature
  19. root — of a word
  20. fall — to drop
  21. degree — an amount
  22. clip — a video
  23. fall — the season
  24. pitch — a sports field

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