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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. lie — to recline
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. mine — for digging
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. face — part of the head
  9. capital — a city
  10. tear — from crying
  11. plane — a tool
  12. spell — a short time
  13. spell — letters
  14. craft — boats
  15. craft — a skill
  16. tear — to rip
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. face — to confront
  19. spell — magic
  20. face — to point toward
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. capital — money
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. craft — a handicraft

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