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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. stem — to come from
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. mark — a grade
  5. present — a gift
  6. spell — a short time
  7. mark — a trace
  8. spell — letters
  9. net — for catching
  10. present — there
  11. spell — magic
  12. face — to point toward
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. net — in sport
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. ball — a great time
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. net — after costs
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. present — the time now
  23. ball — a dance
  24. face — part of the head

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