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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cold · rest · rule · fine · row · ball · spell · wax

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. ball — a great time
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. row — to paddle
  5. cold — an illness
  6. fine — high quality
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. row — a line
  9. rule — government
  10. spell — letters
  11. spell — magic
  12. rest — what's left
  13. ball — a dance
  14. rule — a law
  15. spell — a short time
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. rest — what's left
  20. rest — a break
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. wax — to grow
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. cold — not warm

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