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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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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. track — to keep track
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. wax — to grow
  6. tear — from crying
  7. root — of a word
  8. root — of a plant
  9. hand — help
  10. bound — tied together
  11. track — a path
  12. bound — obliged
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. root — the cause
  15. track — a song
  16. tear — to rip
  17. foot — a measure
  18. stand — to bear
  19. hand — in cards
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. bound — certain

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