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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: bay · ground · prune · wax · lie · face · kid · spell

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. face — to confront
  3. spell — letters
  4. ground — the earth
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. face — part of the head
  7. ground — a position
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. prune — to trim
  10. ground — crushed
  11. prune — to trim
  12. lie — to recline
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. face — to point toward
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. wax — to grow
  18. spell — a short time
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. kid — to tease
  21. spell — magic
  22. kid — child
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. wax — in the ear

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