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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 124 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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. fall — to drop
  4. bass — low music
  5. band — a music group
  6. cell — a phone
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. cell — in biology
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. bat — the animal
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. band — a ring
  20. fall — the season
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. fall — to drop
  24. bass — the fish

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