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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.

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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: wax · capital · tear · stem · chest · last · root · bay

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. wax — to grow
  3. root — of a word
  4. chest — of your body
  5. capital — money
  6. tear — from crying
  7. last — finally
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. stem — to come from
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. last — to go on
  12. root — the cause
  13. last — final
  14. capital — a city
  15. chest — a box
  16. root — of a plant
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. chest — of your body
  23. tear — from crying
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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