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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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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. bat — the animal
  10. staff — employees
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. staff — employees
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. rush — hurry
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. deal — to handle
  20. staff — a stick
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — moving air
  24. perch — the fish

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