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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 116 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 hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. lie — to recline
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. wax — to grow
  5. firm — decided
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. row — a line
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. firm — steady
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. bat — the animal
  16. row — to paddle
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. firm — a company
  24. leaves — of a tree

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