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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.

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: stem · mine · face · wax · spring · toast · game · pass

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. mine — for digging
  3. face — to point toward
  4. face — to confront
  5. wax — to grow
  6. stem — to come from
  7. toast — bread
  8. face — part of the head
  9. game — a match
  10. spring — of water
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. spring — a coil
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. game — wild animals
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. spring — the season
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. stem — of a plant

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