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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: firm · wax · fall · wound · wind · march · file · face

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. march — music
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. face — to confront
  5. march — the month
  6. wax — to grow
  7. firm — decided
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wound — an injury
  10. march — the month
  11. file — a tool
  12. firm — steady
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. file — a document
  15. fall — to drop
  16. wound — an injury
  17. face — to point toward
  18. face — part of the head
  19. fall — the season
  20. firm — a company
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. fall — to drop
  23. file — a line of people
  24. wind — to turn a key

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