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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. chest — of your body
  3. fall — the season
  4. drill — army training
  5. chest — of your body
  6. fall — to drop
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. wax — to grow
  9. pass — a permit
  10. drill — the tool
  11. drill — a practice
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. chest — a box
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. wake — a trail
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. fall — to drop
  24. ruler — for measuring

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