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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. perch — the fish
  5. field — a subject
  6. mark — a trace
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. press — to push
  9. press — a publisher
  10. field — farmland
  11. face — to confront
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. mark — a grade
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. fork — in a road
  16. field — for sport
  17. face — part of the head
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. face — to point toward
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. stem — to come from
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. press — newspapers

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