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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 · row · cold · stem · hand · lean · pass · bore

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. wax — to grow
  4. lean — thin
  5. pass — a permit
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. lean — to bend
  9. hand — help
  10. row — to paddle
  11. stem — to come from
  12. cold — an illness
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. bore — to tire
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. cold — not warm
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. hand — in cards
  23. row — a line
  24. bore — to drill

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