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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. cap — a lid
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. wax — to grow
  7. root — the cause
  8. season — of the year
  9. perch — the fish
  10. root — of a word
  11. cap — a hat
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. mine — for digging
  14. spell — magic
  15. mark — a trace
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. cap — of ice
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. spell — letters
  20. season — in sport
  21. root — of a plant
  22. mark — a grade
  23. spell — a short time
  24. mark — to pay attention

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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