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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. bat — the animal
  3. track — to keep track
  4. object — a thing
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. track — a song
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. wax — to grow
  12. object — to protest
  13. rush — hurry
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. object — an aim
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. track — a path
  20. bear — the animal
  21. cold — an illness
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. bear — the animal

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