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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: face · bay · mark · craft · tear · perch · pop · hand

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. tear — from crying
  3. face — to confront
  4. mark — a grade
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. tear — to rip
  7. pop — to visit
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. craft — a skill
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. pop — music
  12. pop — soda
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. tear — from crying
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. hand — help
  18. mark — a trace
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. craft — boats
  21. face — to point toward
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. perch — the fish
  24. hand — in cards

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