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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. wax — to grow
  3. bass — the fish
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. swing — music
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. tear — from crying
  9. swing — to play on
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. stem — to come from
  12. fall — to drop
  13. swing — in golf
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. fall — to drop
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. tear — to rip
  19. pit — a hole
  20. fall — the season
  21. pit — in a race
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. tear — from crying
  24. mouse — the animal

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