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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: staff · wax · present · cell · racket · saw · dip · mark

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. staff — a stick
  3. present — a gift
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. dip — to sink
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. mark — a grade
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. mark — a trace
  17. present — the time now
  18. cell — in biology
  19. saw — the tool
  20. saw — the tool
  21. staff — employees
  22. present — there
  23. staff — employees
  24. cell — a phone

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