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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  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. wax — to grow
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. land — to come down
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. perch — the fish
  6. mine — for digging
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. pass — a permit
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. chair — a leader
  18. land — a country
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. land — ground
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. wax — in the ear
  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