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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. lean — to bend
  3. drill — a practice
  4. ground — the earth
  5. season — of the year
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. game — a match
  11. drill — the tool
  12. wax — to grow
  13. ground — a position
  14. object — to protest
  15. game — wild animals
  16. drill — army training
  17. pit — a hole
  18. pit — in a race
  19. ground — crushed
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. object — a thing
  23. lean — thin
  24. season — in sport

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