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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. fine — all right
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. plane — a tool
  9. fine — high quality
  10. spring — a coil
  11. pit — in a race
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. row — to paddle
  17. spring — of water
  18. spring — the season
  19. wake — a trail
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. row — a line
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. deal — to handle
  24. pit — a hole

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