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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: spell · face · roll · clip · last · present · stand · straw

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. clip — for paper
  3. face — to point toward
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. spell — letters
  6. present — the time now
  7. clip — a video
  8. roll — a list
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. present — a gift
  12. spell — magic
  13. stand — to bear
  14. spell — a short time
  15. roll — a cake
  16. clip — to cut
  17. present — there
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. last — finally
  20. face — to confront
  21. last — final
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. last — to go on

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