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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. ball — a dance
  3. firm — a company
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. wind — moving air
  6. firm — steady
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. pass — a permit
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. spell — magic
  11. firm — decided
  12. wind — moving air
  13. spell — a short time
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. spell — letters
  16. game — wild animals
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. dip — to sink
  20. wax — to grow
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. ball — a great time
  24. pass — to spend 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