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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. perch — the fish
  3. object — to protest
  4. press — to push
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. rule — a law
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. band — a music group
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. press — newspapers
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. land — ground
  14. press — a publisher
  15. object — an aim
  16. bear — the animal
  17. rule — government
  18. object — a thing
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. band — a ring
  22. bear — the animal
  23. land — to come down
  24. land — a country

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