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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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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: chest · face · tear · rash · rock · lean · bark · wave

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. rock — a stone
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. lean — to bend
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. lean — thin
  11. tear — to rip
  12. face — to confront
  13. tear — from crying
  14. rock — music
  15. rash — a series
  16. chest — a box
  17. rash — hasty
  18. chest — of your body
  19. tear — from crying
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. chest — of your body
  22. bark — to shout
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. face — part of the head

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