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

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. track — a song
  4. face — to point toward
  5. track — to keep track
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. race — humankind
  8. tear — to rip
  9. season — in sport
  10. kid — to tease
  11. tear — from crying
  12. track — a path
  13. plane — a tool
  14. face — part of the head
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. tear — from crying
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. race — a contest
  22. race — the arms race
  23. kid — child
  24. face — to confront

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