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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: tear · spell · club · dip · field · kick · rule · wax

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. spell — letters
  3. wax — to grow
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. club — for dancing
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. field — for sport
  9. dip — to sink
  10. tear — to rip
  11. rule — a law
  12. tear — from crying
  13. spell — a short time
  14. tear — from crying
  15. club — for golf
  16. club — a group
  17. field — a subject
  18. field — farmland
  19. rule — government
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. kick — in football
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. spell — magic

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