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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: fine · stand · wax · cold · content · bear · bat · last

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. fine — high quality
  3. content — the amount
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. bat — the animal
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. cold — not warm
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. last — finally
  13. content — happy
  14. last — final
  15. last — to go on
  16. bear — the animal
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. fine — all right
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. wax — to grow
  21. bear — the animal
  22. stand — to bear
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. stand — for spectators

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