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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 · fan · mate · bat · wake · bowl · spring · tear

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. mate — a friend
  3. tear — to rip
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. mate — to breed
  8. spring — the season
  9. bat — the animal
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. tear — from crying
  12. spring — of water
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. mate — a partner
  15. tear — from crying
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. wake — a trail
  19. face — part of the head
  20. face — to confront
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. spring — a coil

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