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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: tear · sharp · rash · face · perch · kick · club · land

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. land — ground
  3. face — to point toward
  4. land — a country
  5. tear — from crying
  6. rash — hasty
  7. face — part of the head
  8. club — for golf
  9. sharp — clever
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. tear — to rip
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. face — to confront
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. rash — a series
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. land — to come down
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. kick — in football
  22. club — for dancing
  23. club — a group
  24. perch — the fish

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