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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: face · wind · stem · trunk · pass · pop · season · band

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. wind — moving air
  3. face — to confront
  4. band — a music group
  5. stem — to come from
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. face — part of the head
  8. pop — to visit
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. pop — soda
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. band — a ring
  14. face — to point toward
  15. pass — a permit
  16. wind — moving air
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. season — in sport
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. season — of the year
  24. pop — 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