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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. rock — music
  5. staff — employees
  6. staff — employees
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. staff — a stick
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. craft — boats
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. rash — hasty
  13. craft — a skill
  14. rash — a series
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. fork — in a road
  19. row — to paddle
  20. rock — a stone
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. row — a line

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