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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bat · row · lean · wax · saw · stem

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. saw — the tool
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. row — a line
  6. row — to paddle
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. wax — to grow
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. lean — thin
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bat — the animal
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. saw — the tool
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. stem — to come from

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