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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: perch · face · toast · stick · wax · tear · land · drill

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. face — part of the head
  4. drill — the tool
  5. land — ground
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. face — to confront
  8. tear — to rip
  9. drill — army training
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. tear — from crying
  12. land — a country
  13. tear — from crying
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. drill — a practice
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. land — to come down
  19. wax — to grow
  20. toast — bread
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. toast — the most admired
  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