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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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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: ruler · face · wax · kick · rule · patient · craft · chest

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. face — to confront
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. rule — a law
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. chest — a box
  12. chest — of your body
  13. craft — a skill
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. chest — of your body
  16. kick — in football
  17. face — to point toward
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. craft — boats
  20. face — part of the head
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. wax — to grow
  23. rule — government
  24. patient — a sick person

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