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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. wax — to grow
  5. firm — steady
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. last — finally
  9. last — to go on
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. wake — a trail
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. season — of the year
  18. last — final
  19. firm — a company
  20. bulb — for light
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. season — in sport
  23. firm — decided
  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