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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. wound — an injury
  4. face — part of the head
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. degree — an amount
  7. face — to confront
  8. firm — steady
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. wound — an injury
  13. firm — a company
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. scale — size or range
  16. degree — from a university
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — from crying
  19. stem — to come from
  20. tear — to rip
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. degree — temperature
  23. firm — decided
  24. scale — in music

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