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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. pop — to visit
  3. pop — soda
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. fine — high quality
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. clip — a video
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. clip — to cut
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. clip — for paper
  14. plane — a tool
  15. stand — to bear
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. fine — all right
  23. pop — music
  24. plane — in geometry

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