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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. stem — to come from
  3. face — to confront
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. file — a line of people
  7. craft — boats
  8. perch — the fish
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. file — a tool
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. scale — in music
  13. craft — a skill
  14. file — a document
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. face — to point toward
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. face — part of the head
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. scale — size or range
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. dip — to sink

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