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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. lean — to bend
  3. spell — letters
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. spell — a short time
  6. bore — to tire
  7. firm — decided
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. staff — a stick
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. staff — employees
  14. bore — to drill
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. firm — a company
  19. kid — to tease
  20. staff — employees
  21. kid — child
  22. wax — to grow
  23. firm — steady
  24. spell — magic

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