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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 116 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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. last — to go on
  3. cold — not warm
  4. prune — to trim
  5. last — final
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. last — finally
  11. wax — to grow
  12. mate — a partner
  13. mate — to breed
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. cold — an illness
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. prune — to trim
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. wax — for sculpting

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