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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. cue — a signal
  4. last — finally
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. last — final
  7. tear — from crying
  8. spell — magic
  9. stem — to come from
  10. cue — for pool
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. spell — letters
  13. last — to go on
  14. tear — from crying
  15. spell — a short time
  16. wax — to grow
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. cue — a hint

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