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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: shower · land · perch · rule · wax · pass · hand · stem

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. shower — rain
  3. shower — to wash
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. perch — the fish
  11. pass — a permit
  12. land — ground
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. stem — to come from
  15. land — a country
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. hand — help
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. rule — government
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. hand — in cards
  23. rule — a law
  24. land — to come down

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