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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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Word bank
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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. rush — hurry
  4. rest — what's left
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. tear — from crying
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. rest — a break
  13. tear — from crying
  14. face — part of the head
  15. wind — moving air
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. face — to point toward
  18. land — a country
  19. rest — what's left
  20. land — ground
  21. land — to come down
  22. tear — to rip
  23. perch — the fish
  24. perch — for a bird

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