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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. fall — the season
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. cap — a lid
  9. sharp — clever
  10. cap — of ice
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. cap — a hat
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. chip — to eat
  15. bat — the animal
  16. rock — music
  17. hand — help
  18. fall — to drop
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. hand — in cards
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. chip — for betting
  23. fall — to drop
  24. rock — a stone

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