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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. game — wild animals
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. spell — magic
  8. spell — letters
  9. bear — the animal
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. wax — to grow
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. game — a match
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. capital — a city
  21. spell — a short time
  22. bear — the animal
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. deal — to handle

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