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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: scale · toast · tear · fall · cap · wax

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. tear — to rip
  3. cap — a lid
  4. fall — to drop
  5. wax — to grow
  6. toast — bread
  7. scale — size or range
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. scale — in music
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. cap — a hat
  13. tear — from crying
  14. fall — to drop
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. cap — of ice
  17. fall — the season
  18. toast — the most admired

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