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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. land — ground
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. craft — a skill
  5. branch — a division
  6. craft — boats
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. face — to point toward
  9. perch — the fish
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. land — a country
  12. tube — a container
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. face — to confront
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. row — a line
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. tube — the underground
  21. pass — a permit
  22. land — to come down
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. row — to paddle

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