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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: wave · face · spring · land · shower · lean · foot · mine

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. spring — a coil
  3. spring — of water
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. land — a country
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. land — to come down
  8. lean — to bend
  9. land — ground
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. lean — thin
  12. foot — a measure
  13. spring — the season
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. face — to point toward
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. shower — to wash
  19. shower — rain
  20. face — to confront
  21. face — part of the head
  22. mine — for digging
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. foot — the bottom

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