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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: race · roll · chest · rash · season · tear · track · wax

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. chest — a box
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. chest — of your body
  5. race — the arms race
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. chest — of your body
  8. season — in sport
  9. track — a path
  10. roll — a list
  11. roll — a cake
  12. season — of the year
  13. track — to keep track
  14. tear — to rip
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. tear — from crying
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. race — humankind
  19. tear — from crying
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. race — a contest
  22. rash — hasty
  23. track — a song
  24. rash — a series

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