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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: roll · kick · wax · racket · spell · cell · row · mine

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. spell — letters
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. cell — in biology
  7. row — a line
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. roll — a cake
  11. kick — in football
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. mine — for digging
  15. spell — a short time
  16. row — to paddle
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. wax — to grow
  21. cell — a phone
  22. spell — magic
  23. roll — a list
  24. cell — in a prison

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