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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: face · cue · spring · tear · racket · rush · rock · field

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. field — farmland
  3. cue — a hint
  4. spring — a coil
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. rush — hurry
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. tear — from crying
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. spring — of water
  12. field — a subject
  13. cue — for pool
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. cue — a signal
  16. rock — music
  17. tear — from crying
  18. spring — the season
  19. rock — a stone
  20. face — to point toward
  21. tear — to rip
  22. field — for sport
  23. face — part of the head
  24. rock — to move gently

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