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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: wax · racket · pound · tear · land · season · content · cap

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. cap — a hat
  4. cap — a lid
  5. pound — a weight
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. wax — to grow
  8. content — happy
  9. tear — from crying
  10. season — of the year
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. land — a country
  13. content — the amount
  14. tear — to rip
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. season — in sport
  20. tear — from crying
  21. land — to come down
  22. cap — of ice
  23. land — ground
  24. racket — for tennis

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