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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: march · face · fork · key · club · tear

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. face — to confront
  3. face — to point toward
  4. club — a group
  5. key — in music
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. march — music
  8. tear — to rip
  9. key — for a lock
  10. club — for dancing
  11. fork — in a road
  12. march — the month
  13. face — part of the head
  14. key — the most important part
  15. club — for golf
  16. march — the month
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. tear — from crying

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