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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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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. hand — in cards
  5. toast — bread
  6. present — a gift
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. season — of the year
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. season — in sport
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. spell — magic
  16. present — there
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. hand — help
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. present — the time now
  21. wax — to grow
  22. spell — letters
  23. wind — moving air
  24. spell — a short time

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