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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. cap — of ice
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. cap — a hat
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. rash — hasty
  10. cap — a lid
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. fall — to drop
  13. rash — a series
  14. fall — the season
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. fall — to drop

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