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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.

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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: rash · pop · spring · wax · stick · tear · rule · staff

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. spring — the season
  4. rule — government
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. rash — hasty
  7. spring — a coil
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. staff — employees
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. tear — to rip
  12. pop — soda
  13. staff — a stick
  14. staff — employees
  15. tear — from crying
  16. rule — a law
  17. spring — of water
  18. pop — to visit
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. rash — a series
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. wax — to grow
  24. pop — music

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