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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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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: spell · cold · saw · firm · mark · wax · hide · face

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. spell — a short time
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. cold — an illness
  6. wax — to grow
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. firm — a company
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. spell — magic
  12. face — part of the head
  13. cold — not warm
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. mark — a grade
  16. firm — decided
  17. spell — letters
  18. mark — a trace
  19. firm — steady
  20. face — to point toward
  21. saw — the tool
  22. saw — the tool
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. hide — animal skin

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