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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. fall — the season
  4. cap — of ice
  5. prune — to trim
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. vault — a safe
  8. season — of the year
  9. capital — money
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. capital — a city
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. stock — shares
  16. stock — goods
  17. fall — to drop
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. cap — a lid
  20. fall — to drop
  21. season — in sport
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. prune — to trim
  24. cap — a hat

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