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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. face — to point toward
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. land — ground
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. face — to confront
  12. land — to come down
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. stem — to come from
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. bat — the animal
  19. land — a country
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. face — part of the head
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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