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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 · kick · wave · fan · face · march · tube · tear

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. kick — in football
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. march — the month
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. march — the month
  12. row — a line
  13. face — to point toward
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tube — a container
  16. face — to confront
  17. tear — from crying
  18. march — music
  19. tear — to rip
  20. row — to paddle
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. tube — the underground

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