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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
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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: bat · lean · wax · bear · season · cold · board · scale

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. bat — the animal
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bear — the animal
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. season — in sport
  10. cold — an illness
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. board — to get on
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. scale — size or range
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. scale — in music
  17. season — of the year
  18. lean — to bend
  19. wax — to grow
  20. board — a committee
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. lean — thin
  23. bear — the animal
  24. cold — the Cold War

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