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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. wax — to grow
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. chest — of your body
  5. tear — to rip
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. kick — in football
  8. march — music
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. chest — a box
  15. march — the month
  16. stem — to come from
  17. chest — of your body
  18. tear — from crying
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. dip — to sink
  22. tear — from crying
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. dip — to dunk

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