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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. face — part of the head
  3. firm — steady
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. firm — decided
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. firm — a company
  11. face — to confront
  12. bass — the fish
  13. perch — the fish
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. content — happy
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. race — a contest
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. bass — low music
  21. race — the arms race
  22. content — the amount
  23. race — humankind
  24. stem — to come from

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