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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 124 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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. squash — to crush
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. foot — a measure
  5. spell — letters
  6. wind — moving air
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. wax — to grow
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. bat — the animal
  13. wind — moving air
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. squash — the sport
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. stem — to come from
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. spell — magic
  22. spell — a short time
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. bat — in an idiom

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