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

Word bank: pound · cold · plane · prune · face · wave · saw · wax

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. wax — to grow
  4. plane — a tool
  5. saw — the tool
  6. saw — the tool
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. prune — to trim
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. pound — a weight
  15. face — to confront
  16. face — part of the head
  17. cold — not warm
  18. cold — an illness
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. face — to point toward
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. prune — to trim
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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