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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. rush — hurry
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. net — for catching
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. net — after costs
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. ground — the earth
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. ground — crushed
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. ground — a position
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. net — in sport
  22. bore — to tire
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. bore — to drill

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