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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. squash — to crush
  5. chest — of your body
  6. file — a line of people
  7. stem — to come from
  8. file — a document
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. chest — a box
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. squash — the sport
  21. chest — of your body
  22. wax — to grow
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. file — a tool

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