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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. wax — to grow
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. perch — the fish
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. mug — a cup
  12. stem — to come from
  13. bat — the animal
  14. rush — hurry
  15. pit — in a race
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. mug — a face
  23. mug — to rob
  24. pit — a hole

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