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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 116 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: face · cap · race · wax · bat · land · cue · deal

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. race — a contest
  3. cap — a hat
  4. race — the arms race
  5. cue — a hint
  6. bat — the animal
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. face — part of the head
  12. face — to point toward
  13. deal — to handle
  14. wax — to grow
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. cap — of ice
  17. land — a country
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. cap — a lid
  20. land — ground
  21. race — humankind
  22. land — to come down
  23. cue — for pool
  24. face — to confront

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