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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. pop — music
  3. season — in sport
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. last — finally
  10. dip — to sink
  11. pop — to visit
  12. last — final
  13. present — a gift
  14. present — there
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. swing — in golf
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. swing — to play on
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. season — of the year
  21. pop — soda
  22. wax — to grow
  23. present — the time now
  24. swing — 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