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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — magic
  4. hand — help
  5. net — after costs
  6. march — the month
  7. march — the month
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. march — music
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. lean — thin
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. net — for catching
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. row — to paddle
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. row — a line
  19. lean — to bend
  20. hand — in cards
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. spell — a short time
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. net — in sport

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