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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. rule — a law
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. cue — a hint
  5. wound — an injury
  6. present — the time now
  7. game — wild animals
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. present — there
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. race — the arms race
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. cue — a signal
  15. present — a gift
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. wound — an injury
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. wax — to grow
  20. cue — for pool
  21. race — humankind
  22. rule — government
  23. race — a contest
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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