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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. squash — to crush
  8. tear — from crying
  9. bear — the animal
  10. perch — the fish
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. field — for sport
  17. squash — the sport
  18. field — farmland
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. field — a subject
  22. tear — to rip
  23. wax — to grow
  24. bear — the animal

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