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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. field — a subject
  3. fall — to drop
  4. suit — to fit
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. saw — the tool
  10. field — farmland
  11. field — for sport
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. fall — the season
  15. bat — the animal
  16. suit — clothes
  17. saw — the tool
  18. sharp — clever
  19. suit — in cards
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. lie — to recline
  24. fall — to drop

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