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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 120 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 · mate · lean · pitcher · band · season · stock · stem

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. lean — to bend
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. lean — thin
  6. band — a ring
  7. band — a music group
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. season — of the year
  10. mate — a partner
  11. stem — to come from
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. face — to confront
  14. mate — a friend
  15. season — in sport
  16. mate — to breed
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. face — to point toward
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. stock — shares
  21. stock — goods
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. pitcher — a jug

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