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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. band — a music group
  4. tear — to rip
  5. wax — to grow
  6. lean — thin
  7. fall — the season
  8. content — happy
  9. fall — to drop
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. season — of the year
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. tear — from crying
  16. band — a ring
  17. season — in sport
  18. bank — of a river
  19. bank — for money
  20. tear — from crying
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. bank — for money
  23. content — the amount
  24. lean — to bend

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