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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: current · deal · face · bound · wave · chest · tear · hide

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. current — happening now
  3. tear — from crying
  4. current — electric
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. bound — certain
  7. deal — to handle
  8. bound — tied together
  9. face — to point toward
  10. chest — a box
  11. current — of water
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — to rip
  14. face — part of the head
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. bound — obliged
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. face — to confront
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. chest — of your body
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. chest — of your body

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