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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. present — there
  4. cap — a lid
  5. game — wild animals
  6. lean — to bend
  7. wax — to grow
  8. present — a gift
  9. can — to be able to
  10. cap — of ice
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. can — a tin
  13. wake — a trail
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. cap — a hat
  19. game — a match
  20. lean — thin
  21. chip — for betting
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. present — the time now
  24. chip — to eat

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