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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: perch · clip · current · saw · pound · firm · pit · face

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. face — to confront
  3. saw — the tool
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. perch — the fish
  6. clip — a video
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. saw — the tool
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. face — part of the head
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. firm — steady
  13. pit — a hole
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. current — happening now
  16. current — electric
  17. firm — decided
  18. clip — for paper
  19. pit — in a race
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. firm — a company
  22. current — of water
  23. pound — a weight
  24. clip — to cut

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