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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kick · cap · cell · chest · plane · wax

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. cap — of ice
  4. chest — a box
  5. chest — of your body
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. cell — in biology
  11. plane — a tool
  12. chest — of your body
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. kick — in football
  15. cell — a phone
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wax — to grow

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