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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. game — wild animals
  3. staff — employees
  4. face — to point toward
  5. face — part of the head
  6. game — a match
  7. stem — to come from
  8. branch — a division
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. face — to confront
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. staff — a stick
  13. staff — employees
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. present — the time now
  17. present — there
  18. chair — a leader
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. present — a gift
  24. cold — not warm

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