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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. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. spring — a coil
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. spring — the season
  6. last — finally
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. rash — a series
  9. wax — to grow
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. spring — of water
  12. rash — hasty
  13. press — to push
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. roll — a cake
  16. press — newspapers
  17. cold — not warm
  18. press — a publisher
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. last — to go on
  22. cold — an illness
  23. roll — a list
  24. last — final

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