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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. bulb — for light
  7. kid — child
  8. season — in sport
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. band — a music group
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. wax — to grow
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. stem — to come from
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. bulb — for light
  18. season — of the year
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. band — a ring
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. pound — a weight

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