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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. fine — all right
  3. game — wild animals
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. content — happy
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. spell — letters
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. spell — a short time
  19. game — a match
  20. content — the amount
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. fine — high quality
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. spell — magic

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