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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. wax — to grow
  3. squash — the sport
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. band — a ring
  7. squash — to crush
  8. tear — to rip
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tear — from crying
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. lean — thin
  13. wind — moving air
  14. band — a music group
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. track — a song
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. rash — a series
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. rash — hasty
  23. track — to keep track
  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