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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. wind — moving air
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. drill — army training
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. drill — a practice
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. drill — the tool
  14. stem — to come from
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. march — the month
  19. wind — moving air
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. march — the month
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. march — music

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