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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. face — to confront
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. face — to point toward
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. band — a ring
  8. firm — a company
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. lie — to recline
  11. shower — rain
  12. shower — to wash
  13. face — part of the head
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. firm — decided
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. firm — steady
  18. mine — for digging
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. bark — to shout
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. band — a music group
  24. lie — an untruth

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