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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. field — a subject
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. can — a tin
  5. wound — an injury
  6. cold — not warm
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. can — a tin
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. cold — an illness
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. field — farmland
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. rule — government
  18. field — for sport
  19. can — to be able to
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. wound — an injury
  24. rule — a law

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