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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kick · fall · wax · degree · foot · tear

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. tear — to rip
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. tear — from crying
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fall — the season
  8. foot — a measure
  9. degree — temperature
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. degree — from a university
  12. tear — from crying
  13. kick — in football
  14. degree — an amount
  15. wax — to grow
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. kick — a thrill

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