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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. pop — to visit
  4. land — to come down
  5. race — the arms race
  6. pop — music
  7. land — a country
  8. spell — a short time
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. race — humankind
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. land — ground
  15. spell — magic
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. scale — size or range
  20. wax — to grow
  21. race — a contest
  22. scale — in music
  23. spell — letters
  24. patient — a sick person

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