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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. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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. patient — a sick person
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. game — wild animals
  7. stem — to come from
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. cap — a lid
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. cap — a hat
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. capital — a city
  19. ball — a great time
  20. game — a match
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. ball — a dance
  23. cap — of ice
  24. capital — money

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