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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: wave · wax · craft · field · clip · mark · temple · rest

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. clip — to cut
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. wax — to grow
  8. rest — what's left
  9. clip — for paper
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. mark — a grade
  13. field — a subject
  14. clip — a video
  15. craft — boats
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. field — farmland
  18. mark — a trace
  19. rest — what's left
  20. field — for sport
  21. craft — a skill
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. temple — a place of worship

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