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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: wax · pit · tear · rash · lie · net · field · bowl

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. field — a subject
  3. field — farmland
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. pit — in a race
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. net — for catching
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. wax — to grow
  13. rash — a series
  14. net — in sport
  15. tear — to rip
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. tear — from crying
  18. pit — a hole
  19. net — after costs
  20. tear — from crying
  21. field — for sport
  22. lie — to recline
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. rash — hasty

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