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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. bat — the animal
  3. rule — government
  4. spring — the season
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. pit — a hole
  7. root — of a word
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. rule — a law
  12. root — the cause
  13. root — of a plant
  14. scale — in music
  15. spring — a coil
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. scale — size or range
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. pit — in a race
  24. spring — of water

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