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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 124 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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. face — part of the head
  3. stock — goods
  4. face — to point toward
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. rock — music
  8. tear — to rip
  9. face — to confront
  10. fall — to drop
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. toast — bread
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. stock — shares
  15. bulb — for light
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bulb — for light
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. rock — a stone
  21. fall — the season
  22. fall — to drop
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bat — in an idiom

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