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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. wax — to grow
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. ground — the earth
  6. fine — high quality
  7. drill — the tool
  8. ground — a position
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. fine — all right
  11. face — part of the head
  12. drill — army training
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. face — to confront
  15. ground — crushed
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. drill — a practice
  18. face — to point toward

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