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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 · tear · bat · racket · lean · face · trunk · date

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. face — to point toward
  3. lean — thin
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. tear — from crying
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. bat — the animal
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. tear — from crying
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. face — part of the head
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. tear — to rip
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. lean — to bend
  21. bulb — for light
  22. face — to confront
  23. bulb — for light
  24. date — the fruit

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