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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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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: cap · swing · tear · toast · mug · face · wax · fork

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. toast — bread
  3. face — to confront
  4. swing — in golf
  5. face — to point toward
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. tear — from crying
  9. cap — of ice
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. mug — a face
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. cap — a lid
  14. mug — to rob
  15. tear — from crying
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. tear — to rip
  18. swing — to play on
  19. fork — in a road
  20. swing — music
  21. mug — a cup
  22. cap — a hat
  23. face — part of the head
  24. toast — the most admired

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