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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. wake — a trail
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. roll — a cake
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. spring — the season
  10. prune — to trim
  11. spring — a coil
  12. bulb — for light
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. chair — a leader
  15. wax — to grow
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bulb — for light
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. roll — a list
  24. bulb — of a plant

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