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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 116 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: sharp · leaves · row · wax · saw · hide · chair · stem

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. stem — to come from
  6. row — a line
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. wax — to grow
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. sharp — clever
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. row — to paddle
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. chair — a leader
  22. saw — the tool
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. sharp — with an edge

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