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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. wound — an injury
  3. present — a gift
  4. last — to go on
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. bulb — for light
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. band — a music group
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. present — there
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. wax — to grow
  13. present — the time now
  14. mate — to breed
  15. band — a ring
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. mate — a partner
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. wound — an injury
  21. last — finally
  22. last — final
  23. wake — a trail
  24. bulb — for light

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