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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: ground · lean · object · row · mine · wound · wax · drill

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. wax — to grow
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. object — to protest
  5. wound — an injury
  6. mine — for digging
  7. object — an aim
  8. wound — an injury
  9. row — a line
  10. drill — the tool
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. lean — thin
  13. ground — the earth
  14. row — to paddle
  15. lean — to bend
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. object — a thing
  18. ground — a position
  19. drill — a practice
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. drill — army training
  24. ground — crushed

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