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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: wax · staff · safe · fall · can · capital · bulb · pitch

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. capital — a city
  3. staff — employees
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. can — a tin
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. can — to be able to
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. capital — money
  12. fall — to drop
  13. can — a tin
  14. pitch — completely
  15. wax — to grow
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. staff — employees
  18. fall — to drop
  19. staff — a stick
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. bulb — for light
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. bulb — for light
  24. fall — the season

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