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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: capital · content · wound · current · rest · wax · roll · fall

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. fall — to drop
  3. rest — a break
  4. capital — money
  5. current — happening now
  6. roll — a cake
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. roll — a list
  9. capital — a city
  10. rest — what's left
  11. current — electric
  12. content — happy
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. wound — an injury
  17. rest — what's left
  18. fall — to drop
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. current — of water
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. fall — the season
  24. content — the amount

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