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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. content — happy
  3. can — a tin
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. content — the amount
  7. wax — to grow
  8. scale — in music
  9. can — to be able to
  10. scale — size or range
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wound — an injury
  13. fall — the season
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. mark — a grade
  16. can — a tin
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. fall — to drop
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. mark — a trace
  24. wound — an injury

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