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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. craft — a skill
  3. clip — a video
  4. cap — a lid
  5. pound — a weight
  6. chair — a leader
  7. clip — for paper
  8. clip — to cut
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. cap — of ice
  12. track — a song
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. craft — boats
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. stand — to bear
  18. cap — a hat
  19. track — to keep track
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. face — to confront
  22. face — part of the head
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. track — a path

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