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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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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: face · hand · foot · file · shower · drill · last · wax

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. drill — the tool
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. last — to go on
  6. hand — in cards
  7. file — a document
  8. face — to confront
  9. shower — to wash
  10. face — part of the head
  11. hand — help
  12. shower — rain
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. file — a line of people
  15. face — to point toward
  16. wax — to grow
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. drill — a practice
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. last — final
  21. last — finally
  22. file — a tool
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. foot — a measure

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