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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: rest · tear · perch · face · wind · deal

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. face — to point toward
  3. rest — a break
  4. perch — the fish
  5. rest — what's left
  6. face — to confront
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. wind — moving air
  9. deal — to handle
  10. wind — moving air
  11. tear — from crying
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. rest — what's left
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. tear — from crying
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. face — part of the head

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