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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. cold — an illness
  6. wind — moving air
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. wind — moving air
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. pound — a weight
  13. stem — to come from
  14. wax — to grow
  15. rest — what's left
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. bat — the animal
  18. rest — a break
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. rest — what's left
  24. chair — a leader

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