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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: perch · present · face · coach · stem · degree · hide · chest

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. degree — from a university
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. present — there
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. perch — the fish
  7. chest — of your body
  8. degree — temperature
  9. chest — a box
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. stem — to come from
  12. chest — of your body
  13. present — a gift
  14. degree — an amount
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. face — to point toward
  17. face — to confront
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. present — the time now
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. face — part of the head

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