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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. cap — of ice
  3. tear — to rip
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. tear — from crying
  6. swing — music
  7. swing — to play on
  8. swing — in golf
  9. pass — a permit
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. cap — a hat
  13. wax — to grow
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. tear — from crying
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. wind — moving air
  18. foot — a measure
  19. game — wild animals
  20. cap — a lid
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. wind — moving air
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. wax — for sculpting

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