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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 · wave · cold · perch · pitcher · wax · content · suit

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. tear — from crying
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. wax — to grow
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cold — an illness
  10. content — happy
  11. perch — the fish
  12. content — the amount
  13. tear — from crying
  14. suit — in cards
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. suit — clothes
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. suit — to fit
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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