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

Word bank: trunk · lie · content · stem · leaves · snap · face · chair

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. lie — to recline
  4. content — happy
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. face — to confront
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. stem — to come from
  14. chair — a leader
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. content — the amount
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. face — to point toward
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. face — part of the head
  24. trunk — of a car

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