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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. capital — a city
  3. drill — the tool
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. land — a country
  6. capital — money
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. land — to come down
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. drill — a practice
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. wake — a trail
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. drill — army training
  23. wax — to grow
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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