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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tear · rash · straw · present · face · pound

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. rash — hasty
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. face — to confront
  5. tear — from crying
  6. face — to point toward
  7. present — a gift
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. present — the time now
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. pound — a weight
  12. rash — a series
  13. present — there
  14. face — part of the head
  15. tear — from crying
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. straw — dry grass

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