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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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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: wind · tear · pass · sharp · pitch · wax · tube · bank

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. wind — moving air
  4. tear — from crying
  5. pass — a permit
  6. pitch — completely
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. bank — of a river
  9. bank — for money
  10. wax — to grow
  11. tear — from crying
  12. sharp — clever
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. wind — moving air
  18. tube — the underground
  19. bank — for money
  20. tear — to rip
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. tube — a container
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. sharp — exactly

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