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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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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 · cold · wind · vault · lean · wax · rash · plane

  1. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. cold — an illness
  3. rash — a series
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. lean — thin
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. rash — hasty
  9. tear — to rip
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. tear — from crying
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. cold — not warm
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. wind — moving air
  18. tear — from crying
  19. lean — to bend
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. wax — to grow
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. vault — a safe
  24. wind — moving air

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