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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: wake · lean · wax · row · coach · net · pit · ball

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. lean — to bend
  4. pit — a hole
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. net — after costs
  7. ball — a great time
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. wake — a trail
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. row — to paddle
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. wax — to grow
  16. ball — a dance
  17. lean — thin
  18. row — a line
  19. net — for catching
  20. net — in sport
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. pit — in a race

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