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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. fall — to drop
  6. spell — letters
  7. fall — to drop
  8. rash — hasty
  9. chest — of your body
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. spell — magic
  12. land — to come down
  13. land — ground
  14. wax — to grow
  15. chest — a box
  16. mate — a friend
  17. land — a country
  18. mate — to breed
  19. toast — bread
  20. spell — a short time
  21. mate — a partner
  22. chest — of your body
  23. rash — a series
  24. rash — on the skin

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