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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 120 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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. cold — an illness
  3. wind — moving air
  4. rest — a break
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bulb — for light
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. bulb — for light
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rest — what's left
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. season — of the year
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wax — to grow
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. cold — not warm
  23. stem — to come from
  24. stem — a stem cell

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