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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

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: content · kick · pitcher · wax · wind · present · lean · temple

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. present — there
  6. wind — moving air
  7. kick — in football
  8. content — the amount
  9. wax — to grow
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. lean — to bend
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. wind — moving air
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. content — happy
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. present — a gift
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. lean — thin
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. present — the time now

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