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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. bank — of a river
  3. charge — electricity
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. last — final
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. rush — hurry
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. row — a line
  11. wax — to grow
  12. charge — in control
  13. charge — a price
  14. last — to go on
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. game — wild animals
  17. season — in sport
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. bank — for money
  20. row — to paddle
  21. last — finally
  22. season — of the year
  23. game — a match
  24. bank — for money

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