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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. suit — in cards
  3. suit — to fit
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. race — humankind
  6. kid — child
  7. wax — to grow
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. roll — a list
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. charge — a price
  12. season — of the year
  13. stem — to come from
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. suit — clothes
  16. charge — in control
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. race — a contest
  19. roll — a cake
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. charge — electricity
  22. season — in sport
  23. kid — to tease
  24. race — the arms race

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