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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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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: race · cell · face · bore · branch · leaves · foot · perch

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. race — humankind
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. race — a contest
  5. branch — a division
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. bore — to drill
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. race — the arms race
  10. face — to point toward
  11. cell — a phone
  12. face — to confront
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. foot — a measure
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. cell — in biology
  20. face — part of the head
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. perch — the fish
  24. cell — in a prison

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