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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 120 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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. face — part of the head
  4. cell — a phone
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — in biology
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. degree — an amount
  10. face — to point toward
  11. pit — in a race
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. sharp — clever
  14. stem — to come from
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. degree — temperature
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. face — to confront
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. pit — a hole
  22. bear — the animal
  23. degree — from a university
  24. bear — the animal

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