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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 water is too ________________.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. rock — a stone
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. staff — employees
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. staff — a stick
  8. staff — employees
  9. fall — to drop
  10. row — to paddle
  11. fall — to drop
  12. rock — music
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. row — a line
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. wax — to grow
  18. cold — an illness
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. fall — the season
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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