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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 120 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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. rule — government
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. plane — a tool
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. spell — letters
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. rule — a law
  14. spell — a short time
  15. spell — magic
  16. rash — hasty
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. rash — a series
  24. wind — moving air

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