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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 120 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: tear · season · wake · tube · bay · fan · face · pop

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. pop — music
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. tear — from crying
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. season — in sport
  8. tube — a container
  9. pop — soda
  10. pop — to visit
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. face — to point toward
  13. tear — to rip
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. wake — a trail
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. season — of the year
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. face — to confront
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tube — the underground
  24. face — part of the head

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