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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. tear — from crying
  4. squash — the sport
  5. court — for sport
  6. bore — to drill
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. tear — to rip
  12. bat — the animal
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. bore — to tire
  15. mate — a friend
  16. tear — from crying
  17. squash — to crush
  18. mate — to breed
  19. court — of law
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. mate — a partner
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. court — of a king

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