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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. fork — in a road
  3. land — ground
  4. spell — magic
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. content — happy
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. land — a country
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. present — the time now
  13. spell — a short time
  14. spell — letters
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. content — the amount
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. present — there
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. land — to come down
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. wax — to grow

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