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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: bat · kick · wound · face · plane · perch · row · deal

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  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. face — part of the head
  2. wound — an injury
  3. kick — in football
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. bat — the animal
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. row — to paddle
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. face — to confront
  11. deal — to handle
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. plane — a tool
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. row — a line
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. wound — an injury
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. face — to point toward
  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