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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 120 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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wax — to grow
  4. cap — a lid
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. file — a line of people
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. wind — moving air
  9. file — a document
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. cap — of ice
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. bear — the animal
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. last — finally
  18. bear — the animal
  19. wake — a trail
  20. last — final
  21. cap — a hat
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. last — to go on
  24. file — a tool

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