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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: spring · wind · wave · face · wax · cap · craft · patient

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wind — moving air
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. face — part of the head
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. wax — to grow
  8. spring — a coil
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. spring — the season
  13. face — to confront
  14. spring — of water
  15. craft — boats
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. cap — a lid
  19. wind — moving air
  20. face — to point toward
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. craft — a skill
  23. cap — a hat
  24. cap — of ice

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