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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. present — there
  3. spring — of water
  4. present — a gift
  5. land — ground
  6. spring — a coil
  7. row — a line
  8. can — a tin
  9. row — to paddle
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. swing — to play on
  13. toast — bread
  14. present — the time now
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. can — to be able to
  18. swing — music
  19. can — a tin
  20. swing — in golf
  21. land — to come down
  22. land — a country
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. spring — the season

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