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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. swing — in golf
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. land — a country
  10. fall — the season
  11. swing — to play on
  12. swing — music
  13. kick — in football
  14. row — to paddle
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. fall — to drop
  17. prune — to trim
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. prune — to trim
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. wax — to grow
  22. land — to come down
  23. land — ground
  24. fall — to drop

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