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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. wax — to grow
  4. bore — to drill
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. bore — to tire
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. rest — a break
  9. field — farmland
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. rest — what's left
  12. hand — in cards
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. rest — what's left
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. field — for sport
  17. stock — shares
  18. staff — employees
  19. field — a subject
  20. stock — goods
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. staff — employees
  23. staff — a stick
  24. lash — to lash out

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