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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bound — certain
  3. prune — to trim
  4. face — to point toward
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. degree — from a university
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. bound — tied together
  11. degree — temperature
  12. perch — the fish
  13. stem — to come from
  14. face — part of the head
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bass — low music
  17. degree — an amount
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. face — to confront
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. bass — the fish
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. bound — obliged
  24. lash — an eyelash

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