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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. tear — from crying
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. tear — from crying
  8. present — there
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. prune — to trim
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. face — to point toward
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. present — the time now
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. face — part of the head
  20. tear — to rip
  21. plane — a tool
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. present — a gift
  24. prune — to trim

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