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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: wound · mark · fall · wax · racket · mate · tube · face

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. tube — the underground
  3. face — to point toward
  4. fall — the season
  5. mate — to breed
  6. wax — to grow
  7. tube — a container
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. mate — a friend
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. mark — a trace
  12. mate — a partner
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. wound — an injury
  15. mark — a grade
  16. face — part of the head
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. fall — to drop
  19. fall — to drop
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. wound — an injury
  24. face — to confront

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