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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. ball — a dance
  3. wax — to grow
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. lean — thin
  6. chair — a leader
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. ball — a great time
  10. bark — to shout
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. lean — to bend
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. firm — steady
  20. firm — decided
  21. bat — the animal
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. firm — a company

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