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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. charge — electricity
  4. bulb — for light
  5. squash — to crush
  6. wax — to grow
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. object — an aim
  10. game — a match
  11. band — a ring
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. game — wild animals
  15. squash — the sport
  16. object — a thing
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. bulb — for light
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. charge — in control
  21. band — a music group
  22. charge — a price
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. game — a kind of play

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