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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. present — a gift
  3. stand — to bear
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. present — there
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. face — to confront
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bat — the animal
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. present — the time now
  12. face — to point toward
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. tear — from crying
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. tear — to rip
  20. sharp — clever
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. tear — from crying
  24. nail — on a finger

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