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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: tear · capital · saw · firm · face · straw · game · mouse

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. tear — from crying
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. game — a match
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. capital — a city
  9. saw — the tool
  10. face — part of the head
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. game — wild animals
  13. capital — money
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. firm — decided
  16. tear — to rip
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. firm — a company
  20. tear — from crying
  21. saw — the tool
  22. firm — steady
  23. face — to confront
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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