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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. clip — for paper
  3. stem — to come from
  4. staff — employees
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. board — to get on
  7. board — a committee
  8. charge — a price
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. clip — to cut
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. staff — a stick
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. face — part of the head
  15. face — to point toward
  16. charge — in control
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. charge — electricity
  20. bark — to shout
  21. staff — employees
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. clip — a video
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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