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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
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: face · vault · hide · wax · field · craft · bass · jam

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. wax — to grow
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. field — for sport
  9. craft — a skill
  10. bass — the fish
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. vault — a safe
  15. field — a subject
  16. face — part of the head
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. face — to point toward
  19. bass — low music
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. face — to confront
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. field — farmland

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