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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. face — to confront
  3. wax — to grow
  4. key — for a lock
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. ball — a great time
  8. mine — for digging
  9. face — to point toward
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. rule — a law
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. key — the most important part
  14. ball — a dance
  15. key — in music
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. face — part of the head
  18. mine — an explosive

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