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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: fall · roll · face · wound · wax · cap · row · land

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. fall — to drop
  3. roll — a list
  4. roll — a cake
  5. cap — a hat
  6. face — to point toward
  7. row — to paddle
  8. face — to confront
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. face — part of the head
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. wound — an injury
  14. cap — of ice
  15. land — ground
  16. fall — to drop
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. row — a line
  19. fall — the season
  20. wax — to grow
  21. cap — a lid
  22. land — a country
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. wound — an injury

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