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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.

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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: kid · fall · lie · perch · wound · mate · wax · ball

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. kid — child
  3. ball — a dance
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. wax — to grow
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. kid — to tease
  9. lie — to recline
  10. wound — an injury
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. mate — to breed
  14. ball — a great time
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. mate — a partner
  17. mate — a friend
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fall — the season
  21. perch — the fish
  22. wound — an injury
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. wax — for sculpting

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