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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: sharp · bat · wave · fan · season · foot · wax · hand

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. season — in sport
  3. sharp — clever
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. hand — in cards
  6. wax — to grow
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. season — of the year
  14. foot — a measure
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. hand — help
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. bat — the animal
  24. foot — 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