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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. wax — to grow
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. land — a country
  5. land — to come down
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. ball — a dance
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. spring — the season
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. spring — a coil
  13. suit — in cards
  14. suit — to fit
  15. land — ground
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. ball — a great time
  18. wake — a trail
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. spring — of water
  21. suit — clothes
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. sharp — clever
  24. ball — a round shape

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