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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. wax — to grow
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. game — a match
  5. game — wild animals
  6. row — a line
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. branch — a division
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. snap — to click
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. row — to paddle
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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