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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. pound — a weight
  5. squash — the sport
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. field — farmland
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. plane — a tool
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. field — a subject
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. field — for sport
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. squash — to crush
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. pitcher — a jug

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