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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. staff — employees
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. perch — the fish
  6. spell — a short time
  7. tube — a container
  8. bear — the animal
  9. spell — magic
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. tube — the underground
  14. sharp — clever
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. bear — the animal
  20. bulb — for light
  21. staff — employees
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. spell — letters

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