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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bear — the animal
  6. capital — a city
  7. wax — to grow
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. land — to come down
  10. squash — the sport
  11. deal — to handle
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. fall — the season
  15. squash — to crush
  16. land — ground
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. land — a country
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. capital — money
  21. bear — the animal
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. saw — the tool
  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