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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. face — to confront
  3. mate — a partner
  4. vault — a safe
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. rock — a stone
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. mate — a friend
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. wax — to grow
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. race — humankind
  14. mate — to breed
  15. race — the arms race
  16. race — a contest
  17. face — part of the head
  18. face — to point toward
  19. row — to paddle
  20. rock — music
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. row — a line
  24. wax — for sculpting

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