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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  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. rest — what's left
  2. firm — steady
  3. stem — to come from
  4. face — to point toward
  5. cell — a phone
  6. firm — decided
  7. rest — what's left
  8. bulb — for light
  9. net — for catching
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. firm — a company
  14. rest — a break
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. net — in sport
  17. face — to confront
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. capital — money
  20. face — part of the head
  21. net — after costs
  22. cell — in biology
  23. bulb — for light
  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