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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. cue — a signal
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. row — a line
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. cue — a hint
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. wind — moving air
  13. branch — a division
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. wind — moving air
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. cue — for pool
  23. row — to paddle
  24. branch — of a bank

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