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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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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: row · wound · deal · face · spring · wake · season · bear

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. face — to point toward
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. spring — of water
  7. deal — to handle
  8. row — to paddle
  9. wake — a trail
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. face — part of the head
  13. bear — the animal
  14. bear — the animal
  15. spring — a coil
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. season — in sport
  18. season — of the year
  19. wound — an injury
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. spring — the season
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. row — a line
  24. deal — a big deal

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