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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. spring — a coil
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. staff — employees
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. swing — in golf
  7. swing — to play on
  8. staff — employees
  9. capital — a city
  10. spring — of water
  11. content — the amount
  12. fall — to drop
  13. wax — to grow
  14. staff — a stick
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. content — happy
  20. capital — money
  21. fall — to drop
  22. spring — the season
  23. swing — music
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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