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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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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: row · sharp · shower · wind · wax · racket · pit · rest

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. wax — to grow
  3. pit — a hole
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. wind — moving air
  7. shower — to wash
  8. rest — what's left
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. row — to paddle
  11. shower — rain
  12. row — a line
  13. wind — moving air
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. rest — a break
  16. pit — in a race
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. rest — what's left
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. sharp — clever
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. wind — to turn a key

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