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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. wax — to grow
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. stand — to bear
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. mate — a friend
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. hand — help
  10. hand — in cards
  11. net — after costs
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. net — in sport
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. board — a committee
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. net — for catching
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. kick — in football
  22. mate — to breed
  23. board — to get on
  24. mate — a partner

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