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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 120 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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. wax — to grow
  3. bore — to drill
  4. pitch — completely
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. spring — a coil
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. bore — to tire
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. club — for golf
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. club — a group
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — not warm
  22. spring — of water
  23. club — for dancing
  24. pitch — a sports field

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