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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: spring · bat · temple · plane · wax · pass · coach · file

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. file — a line of people
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. spring — a coil
  9. wax — to grow
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. bat — the animal
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. file — a document
  16. file — a tool
  17. plane — a tool
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. spring — the season
  21. spring — of water
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. pass — a permit
  24. pass — to spend time

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