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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: season · snap · cue · rash · cell · perch · face · present

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. face — part of the head
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. cue — for pool
  6. face — to point toward
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. rash — hasty
  9. present — a gift
  10. cue — a signal
  11. face — to confront
  12. season — of the year
  13. snap — to click
  14. cue — a hint
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. cell — in biology
  17. cell — a phone
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. season — in sport
  20. present — the time now
  21. rash — a series
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. present — there
  24. perch — the fish

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