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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. wind — moving air
  3. face — to confront
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. tear — to rip
  6. face — to point toward
  7. rest — what's left
  8. wind — moving air
  9. can — a tin
  10. tube — the underground
  11. face — part of the head
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rest — a break
  15. tube — a container
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. tear — from crying
  18. can — to be able to
  19. perch — the fish
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. can — a tin

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