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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. bulb — for light
  5. last — final
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. last — finally
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. bound — certain
  12. bound — obliged
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. season — in sport
  15. fork — in a road
  16. season — of the year
  17. bulb — for light
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. date — the fruit
  20. bound — tied together
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. last — to go on
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. fork — to eat with

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