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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 116 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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. squash — to crush
  5. wax — to grow
  6. kid — child
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. root — of a plant
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. bound — obliged
  13. bound — tied together
  14. root — of a word
  15. kid — to tease
  16. bound — certain
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. tear — from crying
  19. root — the cause
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — to rip
  22. lean — to bend
  23. squash — the sport
  24. racket — for tennis

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