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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: board · lie · last · cell · tear · rock · face · wax

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. lie — to recline
  3. cell — a phone
  4. wax — to grow
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. tear — from crying
  9. rock — music
  10. tear — to rip
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. face — part of the head
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. last — finally
  15. tear — from crying
  16. cell — in biology
  17. face — to point toward
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. rock — a stone
  20. board — to get on
  21. board — a committee
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. last — final
  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