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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. row — to paddle
  3. row — a line
  4. scale — size or range
  5. lean — thin
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. root — of a plant
  8. wax — to grow
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. sharp — clever
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. pop — soda
  14. root — of a word
  15. clip — to cut
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. lean — to bend
  18. root — the cause
  19. pop — to visit
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. pop — music
  22. clip — a video
  23. scale — in music
  24. clip — for paper

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