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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. key — for a lock
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. key — the most important part
  7. spell — a short time
  8. spell — letters
  9. wound — an injury
  10. season — of the year
  11. cap — a lid
  12. cap — of ice
  13. saw — the tool
  14. spell — magic
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. cap — a hat
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. key — in music
  22. season — in sport
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. saw — the tool

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