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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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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: game · current · object · shower · wax · rash · face · tear

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. current — of water
  3. object — to protest
  4. object — a thing
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. shower — to wash
  9. face — part of the head
  10. tear — from crying
  11. rash — hasty
  12. tear — to rip
  13. tear — from crying
  14. wax — to grow
  15. current — electric
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. object — an aim
  18. rash — a series
  19. game — wild animals
  20. face — to point toward
  21. game — a match
  22. shower — rain
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. current — happening now

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