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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. march — music
  4. tear — from crying
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. date — the fruit
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. march — the month
  10. fall — to drop
  11. wake — a trail
  12. tear — from crying
  13. face — to point toward
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. tear — to rip
  16. face — part of the head
  17. fall — the season
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. face — to confront
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. march — the month
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. fall — to drop
  24. nail — on a finger

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