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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: bat · lie · bark · bound · lash · march · face · tear

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. march — the month
  3. bound — tied together
  4. face — part of the head
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — to rip
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bark — to shout
  9. bound — obliged
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. march — the month
  15. face — to point toward
  16. bound — certain
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. face — to confront
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. lie — to recline
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. bat — the animal

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