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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: ground · face · bay · cap · track · wound · stem · temple

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. face — to confront
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. track — a song
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. ground — a position
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. cap — a lid
  11. stem — to come from
  12. ground — crushed
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. track — a path
  15. wound — an injury
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. cap — a hat
  18. face — to point toward
  19. track — to keep track
  20. ground — the earth
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. face — part of the head
  23. stem — of a plant
  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