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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. object — to protest
  4. lean — to bend
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. cell — in biology
  7. wax — to grow
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. bat — the animal
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. object — a thing
  16. lean — thin
  17. cell — a phone
  18. cell — in a prison

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