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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 · fall · wax · shower · temple · charge · court · tear

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. tear — from crying
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. fall — to drop
  6. fall — to drop
  7. court — of law
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. charge — electricity
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. charge — in control
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. charge — a price
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. tear — to rip
  17. shower — to wash
  18. wax — to grow
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. court — for sport
  21. fall — the season
  22. shower — rain
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. court — of a king

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