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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. object — to protest
  4. drill — the tool
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. wax — to grow
  7. object — an aim
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. object — a thing
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. season — of the year
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. foot — a measure
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. bound — tied together
  17. drill — army training
  18. bound — certain
  19. bound — obliged
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. pitch — completely
  22. drill — a practice
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. season — to add flavour

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