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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: field · trunk · wave · last · bear · pass · face · spring

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. pass — a permit
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. face — to confront
  5. spring — the season
  6. last — final
  7. bear — the animal
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. field — farmland
  10. field — for sport
  11. bear — the animal
  12. spring — of water
  13. last — finally
  14. spring — a coil
  15. field — a subject
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. face — part of the head
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. face — to point toward
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. last — to go on

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