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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. face — to confront
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. tear — from crying
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. face — to point toward
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. tear — to rip
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. mark — a grade
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. hand — help
  15. face — part of the head
  16. hand — in cards
  17. mine — for digging
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. tear — from crying
  21. sharp — clever
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. mark — a trace
  24. leaves — to go away

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