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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 116 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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. cap — a lid
  4. cap — of ice
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. spring — the season
  7. row — a line
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. mate — a friend
  10. lie — to recline
  11. mate — to breed
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. spring — of water
  14. cap — a hat
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. row — to paddle
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. mate — a partner
  20. spring — a coil
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. sharp — clever
  24. sharp — exactly

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