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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 · toast · clip · saw · pop · fall · key · rest

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. wax — to grow
  5. clip — to cut
  6. rest — what's left
  7. pop — music
  8. pop — soda
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. saw — the tool
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. clip — for paper
  13. key — in music
  14. rest — what's left
  15. clip — a video
  16. toast — bread
  17. saw — the tool
  18. rest — a break
  19. fall — the season
  20. fall — to drop
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. key — the most important part
  23. key — for a lock
  24. pop — to visit

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