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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. land — to come down
  3. land — a country
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. object — an aim
  7. race — a contest
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. object — a thing
  11. lean — thin
  12. season — of the year
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. plane — a tool
  17. wax — to grow
  18. sharp — clever
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. object — to protest
  21. lean — to bend
  22. race — humankind
  23. season — in sport
  24. race — the arms race

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