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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.

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: fan · pitch · wax · vault · stem · bat · mine · staff

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. staff — a stick
  6. vault — a safe
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. mine — for digging
  9. staff — employees
  10. pitch — completely
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. bat — the animal
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. stem — to come from
  23. staff — employees
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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