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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: object · wound · face · file · fork · last · wax · bass

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. face — to confront
  3. object — an aim
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. bass — low music
  6. last — final
  7. file — a line of people
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. object — to protest
  10. face — part of the head
  11. fork — in a road
  12. file — a tool
  13. wound — an injury
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. face — to point toward
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. last — to go on
  19. bass — the fish
  20. file — a document
  21. wound — an injury
  22. object — a thing
  23. last — finally
  24. wax — to grow

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