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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. spring — a coil
  4. pop — music
  5. charge — a price
  6. spring — of water
  7. wax — to grow
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. pop — to visit
  11. season — in sport
  12. pop — soda
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. date — the fruit
  15. spring — the season
  16. game — a match
  17. charge — electricity
  18. charge — in control
  19. game — wild animals
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. season — of the year
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. ruler — for measuring

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