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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. tear — to rip
  4. wax — to grow
  5. perch — the fish
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. saw — the tool
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. tear — from crying
  18. row — a line
  19. row — to paddle
  20. staff — employees
  21. staff — employees
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. staff — a stick
  24. saw — the tool

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