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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
468
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: hide · land · net · rash · fan · pit · hand · wax

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. wax — to grow
  3. land — to come down
  4. hand — help
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. land — ground
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. net — in sport
  11. land — a country
  12. hand — in cards
  13. net — after costs
  14. net — for catching
  15. pit — in a race
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. rash — a series
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. pit — a hole
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. fan — a supporter

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