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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. mate — a partner
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. plane — a tool
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. spell — magic
  8. wax — to grow
  9. squash — the sport
  10. mate — a friend
  11. spring — a coil
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. squash — to crush
  15. spell — letters
  16. spring — of water
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. spell — a short time
  21. mate — to breed
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. spring — the season
  24. safe — out of danger

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