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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: prune · tube · degree · shower · face · stand · wax · plane

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. degree — from a university
  5. wax — to grow
  6. degree — an amount
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. tube — a container
  9. shower — to wash
  10. stand — to bear
  11. tube — the underground
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. plane — a tool
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. shower — rain
  18. face — to confront
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. prune — to trim
  21. prune — to trim
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. degree — temperature
  24. face — to point toward

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