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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 don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. face — to point toward
  3. bass — low music
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. bass — the fish
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. cold — not warm
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. suit — clothes
  11. cold — an illness
  12. suit — in cards
  13. suit — to fit
  14. stem — to come from
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. face — to confront
  18. face — part of the head
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. pop — soda
  21. chair — a leader
  22. pop — music
  23. pound — a weight
  24. stem — a stem cell

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