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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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468
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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. scale — in music
  4. scale — size or range
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. face — part of the head
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. spring — the season
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. perch — the fish
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. branch — a division
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. face — to confront
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. mine — for digging
  20. spring — a coil
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. spring — of water
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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