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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: rash · dip · date · tear · bat · sharp · wax · bear

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. sharp — clever
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. wax — to grow
  10. bear — the animal
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. tear — from crying
  16. dip — to sink
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. date — the fruit
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. bear — the animal
  22. tear — from crying
  23. rash — hasty
  24. tear — to rip

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