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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. tear — to rip
  3. wound — an injury
  4. face — to confront
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. swing — to play on
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — from crying
  10. swing — in golf
  11. swing — music
  12. bark — to shout
  13. fine — all right
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. fine — high quality
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. perch — the fish
  19. wound — an injury
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. rule — government
  22. rule — a law
  23. face — part of the head
  24. rule — to rule out

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