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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. face — to confront
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. tear — from crying
  5. last — to go on
  6. face — part of the head
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. tear — to rip
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. track — to keep track
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. track — a path
  14. wax — to grow
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. track — a song
  18. bat — the animal
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. last — finally
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. tear — from crying
  23. face — to point toward
  24. last — final

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