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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 116 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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. tear — to rip
  4. spring — a coil
  5. fall — to drop
  6. bulb — for light
  7. last — to go on
  8. fall — the season
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. spring — of water
  12. swing — music
  13. last — final
  14. tear — from crying
  15. last — finally
  16. bulb — for light
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wind — moving air
  19. tear — from crying
  20. spring — the season
  21. swing — in golf
  22. swing — to play on
  23. fall — to drop
  24. wax — to grow

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