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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. rule — government
  6. wax — to grow
  7. game — a match
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. branch — a division
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. row — a line
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. game — wild animals
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. rule — a law
  24. row — to paddle

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