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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. present — there
  3. net — in sport
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. ground — the earth
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. bound — certain
  9. net — after costs
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. bound — tied together
  12. present — the time now
  13. wax — to grow
  14. net — for catching
  15. present — a gift
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. season — of the year
  18. wound — an injury
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. ground — a position
  21. perch — the fish
  22. ground — crushed
  23. bound — obliged
  24. perch — for a bird

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