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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: pitcher · plane · fall · wind · wax · roll · dip · ground

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. ground — crushed
  3. fall — to drop
  4. ground — the earth
  5. plane — a tool
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. wax — to grow
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. wind — moving air
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. ground — a position
  14. roll — a list
  15. wind — moving air
  16. roll — a cake
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. dip — to sink
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. fall — to drop
  23. fall — the season
  24. plane — an aircraft

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