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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 120 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 · tear · spell · pitch · bulb · arm · straw

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. tear — to rip
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. spell — letters
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. tear — from crying
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. bulb — for light
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. pitch — completely
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. wax — to grow
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bear — the animal
  20. spell — magic
  21. spell — a short time
  22. bear — the animal
  23. bulb — for light
  24. arm — part of the body

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