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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. band — a ring
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. root — of a word
  8. hand — help
  9. hand — in cards
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. root — of a plant
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. chip — to eat
  19. wake — a trail
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. chip — for betting
  22. root — the cause
  23. band — a music group
  24. wax — to grow

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