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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 116 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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. land — ground
  3. mine — for digging
  4. squash — the sport
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. land — a country
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. land — to come down
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. last — to go on
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. wax — to grow
  15. squash — to crush
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. last — finally
  19. last — final
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. season — of the year
  23. dip — to sink
  24. season — in sport

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