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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. face — to point toward
  4. face — to confront
  5. face — part of the head
  6. staff — employees
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. clip — to cut
  9. chip — for betting
  10. wake — a trail
  11. staff — a stick
  12. chip — to eat
  13. craft — boats
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. clip — for paper
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. staff — employees
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. craft — a skill
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. perch — the fish
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. clip — a video

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