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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. charge — electricity
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. rest — what's left
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. rest — a break
  8. charge — a price
  9. spell — magic
  10. tear — from crying
  11. spell — a short time
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. charge — in control
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. rest — what's left
  20. bark — to shout
  21. tear — to rip
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. wax — to grow
  24. spell — letters

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