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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 120 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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. rest — a break
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. race — humankind
  8. bat — the animal
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. rest — what's left
  11. fall — to drop
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. race — a contest
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. fall — to drop
  17. race — the arms race
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. lie — to recline
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. wax — to grow
  23. rest — what's left
  24. fall — the season

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