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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. press — to push
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. chest — of your body
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. tear — to rip
  10. face — to confront
  11. chest — a box
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. perch — the fish
  14. scale — in music
  15. press — a publisher
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. chest — of your body
  18. scale — size or range
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. tear — from crying
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. press — newspapers
  23. face — part of the head
  24. face — to point toward

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