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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. spell — letters
  4. lean — thin
  5. fine — high quality
  6. lean — to bend
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. spell — a short time
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. present — a gift
  12. bat — the animal
  13. present — there
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. row — a line
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. wax — to grow
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. spell — magic
  21. present — the time now
  22. band — a ring
  23. band — a music group
  24. fine — all right

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