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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. spell — a short time
  4. bat — the animal
  5. pass — a permit
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. spell — letters
  13. stem — to come from
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. wax — to grow
  17. spell — magic
  18. bark — to shout

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