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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. stand — to bear
  3. tear — from crying
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bass — the fish
  7. tear — from crying
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. tear — to rip
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. scale — size or range
  12. scale — in music
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. fall — to drop
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. wind — moving air
  18. fall — the season
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. fall — to drop
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. bass — low music
  24. wave — with your hand

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