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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. mate — a partner
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. mate — a friend
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. season — of the year
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. wax — to grow
  18. perch — the fish
  19. scale — size or range
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. kid — to tease
  22. mate — to breed
  23. season — in sport
  24. scale — in music

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