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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: branch · tear · face · shower · pass · field · rock · sharp

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. face — to confront
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. face — part of the head
  6. field — farmland
  7. rock — music
  8. branch — a division
  9. field — for sport
  10. shower — rain
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. shower — to wash
  13. face — to point toward
  14. sharp — clever
  15. pass — a permit
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. rock — a stone
  18. field — a subject
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tear — from crying
  24. pass — to spend time

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