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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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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: wake · club · band · tear · face · stock · deal · saw

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. saw — the tool
  4. face — to confront
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. tear — from crying
  7. face — to point toward
  8. deal — to handle
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. stock — goods
  12. stock — shares
  13. face — part of the head
  14. tear — to rip
  15. club — a group
  16. saw — the tool
  17. band — a music group
  18. club — for golf
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. band — a ring
  22. tear — from crying
  23. wake — a trail
  24. wake — before a funeral

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