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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. firm — decided
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. wax — to grow
  5. capital — a city
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. wake — a trail
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. wind — moving air
  10. bat — the animal
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. deal — to handle
  15. firm — steady
  16. wind — moving air
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. stand — to bear
  19. capital — money
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. firm — a company
  24. stand — for spectators

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