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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 116 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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. root — the cause
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. season — in sport
  7. hand — help
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. scale — size or range
  13. root — of a word
  14. fork — in a road
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. kid — to tease
  18. kid — child
  19. season — of the year
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. scale — in music
  23. hand — in cards
  24. root — of a plant

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