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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 120 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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. hand — in cards
  4. row — to paddle
  5. wax — to grow
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. row — a line
  11. foot — a measure
  12. field — for sport
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. tube — a container
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. hand — help
  19. field — a subject
  20. squash — the sport
  21. lie — to recline
  22. squash — to crush
  23. field — farmland
  24. tube — the underground

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