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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: tear · cabinet · lie · racket · wax · scale · clip · trunk

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. clip — a video
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. scale — size or range
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. tear — to rip
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. clip — to cut
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. lie — to recline
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. tear — from crying
  18. wax — to grow
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. clip — for paper
  21. scale — in music
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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