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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. land — ground
  4. degree — temperature
  5. face — to confront
  6. stem — to come from
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. pop — to visit
  12. pop — music
  13. degree — from a university
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. degree — an amount
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. chip — to eat
  18. pop — soda
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. land — a country
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. face — part of the head
  23. face — to point toward
  24. chip — for betting

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