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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: wind · press · fall · calf · pitcher · cue · perch · face

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. wind — moving air
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. cue — for pool
  7. fall — to drop
  8. press — newspapers
  9. press — a publisher
  10. perch — the fish
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. face — to point toward
  15. fall — to drop
  16. wind — moving air
  17. face — to confront
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. cue — a signal
  20. press — to push
  21. cue — a hint
  22. fall — the season
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. wind — to turn a key

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