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

Word bank: wax · lie · club · cell · arm · rush · tear · pitch

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. club — for dancing
  3. wax — to grow
  4. cell — a phone
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. rush — hurry
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. tear — from crying
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. cell — in biology
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. tear — to rip
  17. tear — from crying
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. lie — to recline
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. club — a group
  24. pitch — completely

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