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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. spell — a short time
  3. wax — to grow
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. hand — in cards
  6. hand — help
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. row — a line
  10. spell — magic
  11. content — happy
  12. dip — to sink
  13. stand — to bear
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. spell — letters
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. mine — for digging
  23. content — the amount
  24. wax — in the ear

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