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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 120 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. tear — to rip
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. spell — letters
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. spell — a short time
  7. wax — to grow
  8. tear — from crying
  9. bulb — for light
  10. bear — the animal
  11. spell — magic
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. bulb — for light
  15. tear — from crying
  16. bear — the animal
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. pitch — completely

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