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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. fall — the season
  4. mate — to breed
  5. fall — to drop
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. bulb — for light
  9. saw — the tool
  10. staff — employees
  11. fall — to drop
  12. game — wild animals
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. wax — to grow
  16. game — a match
  17. staff — a stick
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. staff — employees
  20. saw — the tool
  21. mate — a partner
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. mate — a friend

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