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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. face — to point toward
  3. prune — to trim
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. bear — the animal
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — not warm
  9. row — to paddle
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. cold — an illness
  12. face — part of the head
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. bear — the animal
  15. fork — in a road
  16. press — a publisher
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. cap — a hat
  19. press — newspapers
  20. face — to confront
  21. press — to push
  22. row — a line
  23. prune — to trim
  24. cap — of ice

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