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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: lie · face · pit · chest · rest · cold · tear · bore

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. 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. chest — a box
  3. pit — in a race
  4. chest — of your body
  5. tear — from crying
  6. rest — what's left
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. bore — to tire
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. cold — an illness
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. rest — what's left
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. bore — to drill
  15. rest — a break
  16. face — to point toward
  17. face — to confront
  18. tear — from crying
  19. lie — to recline
  20. chest — of your body
  21. pit — a hole
  22. cold — not warm
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. 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