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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — to grow
  3. date — the fruit
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — of water
  6. pitch — completely
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. ball — a great time
  9. object — an aim
  10. object — a thing
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. saw — the tool
  14. saw — the tool
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. stand — to bear
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. object — to protest
  19. spring — the season
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. ball — a dance

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