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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. face — part of the head
  6. tear — to rip
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. bore — to drill
  10. bore — to tire
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. tear — from crying
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. race — a contest
  15. date — the fruit
  16. snap — to click
  17. race — humankind
  18. rash — a series
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. rash — hasty
  22. face — to point toward
  23. race — the arms race
  24. tear — from crying

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