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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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468
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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. wax — to grow
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. swing — in golf
  8. spring — of water
  9. swing — to play on
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. spring — a coil
  12. bark — to shout
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. swing — music
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. spring — the season
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. pass — a permit
  21. kick — in football
  22. rush — hurry
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. kick — with a leg

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