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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. squash — to crush
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. field — a subject
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. game — wild animals
  9. last — to go on
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. last — final
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. wax — to grow
  14. last — finally
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. game — a match
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. saw — the tool
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. squash — the sport
  22. field — farmland
  23. saw — the tool
  24. field — for 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