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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. last — final
  3. last — to go on
  4. wax — to grow
  5. spell — letters
  6. band — a music group
  7. spell — a short time
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. face — part of the head
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. fork — in a road
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. last — finally
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. squash — to crush
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. spell — magic
  20. face — to confront
  21. squash — the sport
  22. band — a ring
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. fork — a garden 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