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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: lean · straw · wax · present · face · rock · track · court

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. face — to point toward
  3. rock — a stone
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. present — a gift
  6. lean — to bend
  7. court — of a king
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. face — part of the head
  12. rock — music
  13. face — to confront
  14. lean — thin
  15. track — to keep track
  16. court — of law
  17. wax — to grow
  18. track — a song
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. present — the time now
  21. court — for sport
  22. present — there
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. track — a path

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