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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: wax · cold · stick · spring · lie · key · row · face

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. cold — not warm
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. spring — of water
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. spring — a coil
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. lie — to recline
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. face — part of the head
  12. key — the most important part
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. spring — the season
  15. cold — an illness
  16. face — to confront
  17. key — for a lock
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. wax — to grow
  21. row — a line
  22. face — to point toward
  23. key — in music
  24. row — a quarrel

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