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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 tickets are free of ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. squash — to crush
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — of water
  6. fall — to drop
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. wax — to grow
  10. charge — electricity
  11. charge — in control
  12. spring — the season
  13. fine — all right
  14. mine — for digging
  15. wake — a trail
  16. squash — the sport
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. fine — high quality
  21. fall — the season
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. fall — to drop

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