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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: bulb · bat · rush · tear · fork · pop · cabinet · face

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. bat — the animal
  3. rush — hurry
  4. tear — to rip
  5. pop — soda
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. pop — music
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. face — part of the head
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. bulb — for light
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — from crying
  20. pop — to visit
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. fork — in a road
  23. bulb — for light
  24. 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