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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. current — electric
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. stem — to come from
  6. current — of water
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. land — a country
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. face — part of the head
  12. shower — to wash
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. land — to come down
  15. bore — to tire
  16. bore — to drill
  17. current — happening now
  18. shower — rain
  19. face — to point toward
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. land — ground
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. date — the fruit

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