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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. face — to point toward
  3. prune — to trim
  4. mine — for digging
  5. face — to confront
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. prune — to trim
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. tear — to rip
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tube — the underground
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. face — part of the head
  21. tear — from crying
  22. foot — a measure
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. tube — a container

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