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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: trunk · face · chair · calf · present · stem · pit · fall

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. pit — in a race
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. fall — to drop
  5. present — a gift
  6. fall — the season
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. fall — to drop
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. face — to point toward
  11. pit — a hole
  12. present — there
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. present — the time now
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. stem — to come from
  17. face — to confront
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. chair — a leader
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. face — part of the head
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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