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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. wax — to grow
  3. net — for catching
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. bound — tied together
  8. net — after costs
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. bore — to tire
  12. bound — obliged
  13. bore — to drill
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. root — the cause
  17. root — of a plant
  18. net — in sport
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. date — the fruit
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. bound — certain
  24. wax — in the ear

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