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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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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: bank · face · rock · tear · cold · foot · mate · lie

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. tear — to rip
  3. bank — for money
  4. bank — of a river
  5. mate — a friend
  6. face — to point toward
  7. tear — from crying
  8. rock — a stone
  9. mate — to breed
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. face — to confront
  12. cold — not warm
  13. face — part of the head
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. foot — a measure
  17. cold — an illness
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. tear — from crying
  21. mate — a partner
  22. bank — for money
  23. lie — to recline
  24. rock — to move gently

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