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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. fine — all right
  6. can — a tin
  7. wax — to grow
  8. rule — a law
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. rule — government
  11. can — a tin
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. can — to be able to
  15. face — to point toward
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. fine — high quality
  19. stem — to come from
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. face — to confront

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