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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: land · suit · tear · present · spell · mate · face · cap

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. spell — magic
  3. mate — a partner
  4. mate — to breed
  5. face — part of the head
  6. land — ground
  7. mate — a friend
  8. present — the time now
  9. land — a country
  10. cap — of ice
  11. tear — to rip
  12. spell — a short time
  13. suit — to fit
  14. present — there
  15. cap — a lid
  16. land — to come down
  17. present — a gift
  18. suit — clothes
  19. tear — from crying
  20. suit — in cards
  21. face — to point toward
  22. spell — letters
  23. face — to confront
  24. cap — a hat

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