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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. kid — child
  4. season — of the year
  5. track — a path
  6. track — a song
  7. bear — the animal
  8. can — to be able to
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. bear — the animal
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. can — a tin
  17. stem — to come from
  18. can — a tin
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. perch — the fish
  21. track — to keep track
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. kid — to tease
  24. wax — to grow

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