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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. spring — a coil
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. last — final
  6. can — a tin
  7. last — to go on
  8. game — wild animals
  9. wax — to grow
  10. can — to be able to
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. deal — to handle
  13. saw — the tool
  14. saw — the tool
  15. spring — of water
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. last — finally
  20. can — a tin
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. spring — the season
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. game — a match

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