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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: date · wax · mate · cap · face · wind · fine · row

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. date — the fruit
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. row — to paddle
  5. cap — of ice
  6. row — a line
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wax — to grow
  9. cap — a hat
  10. mate — a partner
  11. face — to confront
  12. fine — high quality
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. face — to point toward
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. wind — moving air
  17. cap — a lid
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. fine — all right
  22. mate — a friend
  23. face — part of the head
  24. fine — a penalty

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