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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 120 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: chest · capital · fall · stand · wax · kick · wave · rule

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. rule — a law
  3. fall — to drop
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. capital — a city
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. fall — the season
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. chest — of your body
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. capital — money
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — a box
  18. kick — in football
  19. stand — to bear
  20. wax — to grow
  21. fall — to drop
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. capital — a big letter

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