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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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. tear — to rip
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rash — hasty
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. rest — what's left
  10. tear — from crying
  11. wind — moving air
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. tear — from crying
  15. cap — a hat
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. wind — moving air
  18. cap — of ice
  19. cap — a lid
  20. lie — to recline
  21. wax — to grow
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. rash — a series
  24. pitcher — a jug

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