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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. mate — a friend
  3. fall — the season
  4. ground — a position
  5. mate — a partner
  6. mate — to breed
  7. perch — the fish
  8. face — to confront
  9. face — part of the head
  10. cue — a signal
  11. fall — to drop
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. cue — a hint
  14. cap — a lid
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. fall — to drop
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. cap — a hat
  19. branch — a division
  20. cap — of ice
  21. cue — for pool
  22. ground — the earth
  23. face — to point toward
  24. ground — crushed

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