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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 116 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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. cell — in biology
  5. rush — hurry
  6. hand — help
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. pound — a weight
  9. spell — magic
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. cell — a phone
  13. spell — letters
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. hand — in cards
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. spell — a short time

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