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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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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: ground · wave · tear · rock · wake · key · capital · face

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. rock — music
  3. tear — from crying
  4. key — for a lock
  5. rock — a stone
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. key — the most important part
  8. wake — a trail
  9. face — to confront
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. face — to point toward
  12. ground — a position
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. tear — to rip
  15. capital — money
  16. capital — a city
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. face — part of the head
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. key — in music
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. tear — from crying
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. ground — crushed

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