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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 116 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: wave · bear · coach · wound · rush · bat · face · mine

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. bear — the animal
  4. bear — the animal
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. mine — for digging
  9. face — to confront
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. rush — hurry
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — an injury
  16. bat — the animal
  17. face — part of the head
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. wave — of the sea

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