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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: row · chest · can · spell · wax · bat · rash · key

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. wax — to grow
  4. can — to be able to
  5. chest — a box
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. row — to paddle
  8. rash — a series
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. key — the most important part
  11. can — a tin
  12. chest — of your body
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. chest — of your body
  16. rash — hasty
  17. spell — a short time
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. bat — the animal
  20. can — a tin
  21. key — for a lock
  22. spell — letters
  23. row — a line
  24. key — in music

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