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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. wax — to grow
  3. rash — hasty
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. kick — in football
  6. face — part of the head
  7. staff — employees
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. face — to point toward
  10. rash — a series
  11. fine — high quality
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. staff — a stick
  15. bat — the animal
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. fine — all right
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. face — to confront
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. staff — employees
  24. wax — for sculpting

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