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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 · leaves · bat · tear · safe · wound · jam · pit

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. bat — the animal
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. tear — from crying
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. tear — from crying
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. pit — in a race
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. tear — to rip
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. wound — an injury
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. pit — a hole
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. wax — to grow
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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