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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mine · leaves · land · face · tear · swing · present · pop

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. tear — from crying
  3. swing — music
  4. tear — to rip
  5. present — the time now
  6. pop — soda
  7. face — part of the head
  8. swing — to play on
  9. land — to come down
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. tear — from crying
  12. land — a country
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. face — to point toward
  15. face — to confront
  16. pop — to visit
  17. pop — music
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. present — a gift
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. land — ground
  22. mine — for digging
  23. present — there
  24. swing — in golf

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