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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. firm — steady
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. wound — an injury
  5. tear — from crying
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. face — to point toward
  8. pass — a permit
  9. face — to confront
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. perch — the fish
  19. tear — from crying
  20. firm — decided
  21. firm — a company
  22. wound — an injury
  23. tear — to rip
  24. face — part of the head

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