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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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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: kid · stem · wax · wound · rest · ground · cold · bowl

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. rest — what's left
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. cold — an illness
  5. kid — child
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. wax — to grow
  11. wound — an injury
  12. ground — crushed
  13. cold — not warm
  14. wound — an injury
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. rest — a break
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. ground — a position
  20. stem — to come from
  21. kid — to tease
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. rest — what's left

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