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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. tear — from crying
  6. stand — to bear
  7. bat — the animal
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. tear — from crying
  10. firm — a company
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. face — to confront
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. content — happy
  15. content — the amount
  16. tear — to rip
  17. firm — steady
  18. pound — a weight
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. firm — decided
  22. face — part of the head
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. content — videos and posts

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