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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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Word bank
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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: face · tear · stick · fork · cold · kick

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. face — part of the head
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. kick — in football
  8. face — to confront
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. fork — in a road
  11. tear — from crying
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. cold — an illness
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. tear — from crying
  17. cold — not warm
  18. face — to point toward

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