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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. fall — to drop
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. charge — a price
  8. wax — to grow
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. bat — the animal
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. cold — an illness
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. charge — electricity
  15. wake — a trail
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. vault — a safe
  18. cold — not warm
  19. charge — in control
  20. fall — the season
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. fall — to drop

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