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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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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: wax · shower · rock · spell · stem · mark

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. spell — a short time
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. rock — music
  6. spell — letters
  7. mark — a trace
  8. shower — rain
  9. mark — a grade
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. rock — a stone
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. spell — magic
  15. stem — to come from
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. shower — to wash
  18. rock — to move gently

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