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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: row · wax · bass · fall · wind · rush · arm · ruler

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. wind — moving air
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. bass — low music
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. fall — the season
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. rush — hurry
  13. wax — to grow
  14. row — to paddle
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. fall — to drop
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. row — a line
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. bass — the fish

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