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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. drill — the tool
  3. stand — to bear
  4. shower — rain
  5. drill — a practice
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. craft — boats
  9. shower — to wash
  10. game — a match
  11. craft — a skill
  12. wax — to grow
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. tear — from crying
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. tear — to rip
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. drill — army training
  21. game — wild animals
  22. face — part of the head
  23. tear — from crying
  24. face — to point toward

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