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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. firm — steady
  3. net — after costs
  4. bear — the animal
  5. lean — thin
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. lean — to bend
  8. staff — a stick
  9. staff — employees
  10. cold — an illness
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. bear — the animal
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. net — in sport
  16. staff — employees
  17. net — for catching
  18. squash — to crush
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. wax — to grow
  21. squash — the sport
  22. firm — a company
  23. firm — decided
  24. cold — not warm

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