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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 116 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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. cold — an illness
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. face — to confront
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. face — to point toward
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. cold — not warm
  12. stem — to come from
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. spring — a coil
  16. deal — to handle
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. board — to get on
  21. spring — of water
  22. spring — the season
  23. perch — the fish
  24. board — a committee

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