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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: spring · root · row · bay · bank · chest · wax · cue

  1. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. bank — of a river
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. wax — to grow
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. chest — a box
  12. bank — for money
  13. row — to paddle
  14. spring — a coil
  15. spring — of water
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. cue — a hint
  18. root — of a word
  19. root — of a plant
  20. row — a line
  21. spring — the season
  22. bank — for money
  23. root — the cause
  24. cue — for pool

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