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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: face · object · hand · staff · wound · firm · kid · perch

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. staff — a stick
  4. firm — a company
  5. object — an aim
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — an injury
  8. face — to confront
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. face — part of the head
  11. hand — in cards
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. staff — employees
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. firm — steady
  16. kid — to tease
  17. face — to point toward
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. firm — decided
  20. kid — child
  21. object — a thing
  22. perch — the fish
  23. hand — help
  24. staff — employees

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