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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: bear · wax · spell · hand · ground · pit · pop · rest

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. pop — to visit
  3. hand — in cards
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. rest — what's left
  6. spell — a short time
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. pop — soda
  10. pit — in a race
  11. spell — letters
  12. wax — to grow
  13. spell — magic
  14. ground — a position
  15. bear — the animal
  16. rest — a break
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. hand — help
  19. pit — a hole
  20. rest — what's left
  21. ground — crushed
  22. pop — music
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. ground — the earth

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