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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
468
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: tube · sharp · wax · bat · rest · bear · lean · content

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. rest — what's left
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. lean — thin
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. lean — to bend
  9. tube — the underground
  10. content — the amount
  11. rest — what's left
  12. sharp — clever
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. rest — a break
  16. bear — the animal
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. wax — to grow
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. bear — the animal
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. bat — the animal
  24. tube — a container

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