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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. object — to protest
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. ground — the earth
  5. wound — an injury
  6. ground — crushed
  7. swing — music
  8. last — to go on
  9. last — final
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. last — finally
  12. object — an aim
  13. swing — in golf
  14. ground — a position
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. swing — to play on
  18. object — a thing
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. wound — an injury

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