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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. band — a music group
  3. wax — to grow
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. chest — of your body
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. chest — a box
  16. stem — to come from
  17. tear — to rip
  18. band — a ring
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. tear — from crying
  21. chest — of your body
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. tear — from crying

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