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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: tear · ruler · mate · content · mine · bulb · capital · wax

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. content — happy
  4. tear — to rip
  5. capital — money
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. mate — to breed
  9. capital — a city
  10. wax — to grow
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. tear — from crying
  14. mate — a friend
  15. bulb — for light
  16. mine — for digging
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. bulb — for light
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. tear — from crying
  23. mate — a partner
  24. wax — in the ear

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