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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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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 · rest · date · bear · tear · face · race · game

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. face — to confront
  3. date — the fruit
  4. bear — the animal
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. wake — a trail
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. face — to point toward
  10. bear — the animal
  11. race — the arms race
  12. game — a match
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. race — humankind
  15. tear — to rip
  16. rest — what's left
  17. tear — from crying
  18. rest — a break
  19. tear — from crying
  20. face — part of the head
  21. race — a contest
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. game — wild animals

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