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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. mine — for digging
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. season — of the year
  5. stand — to bear
  6. staff — employees
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. wax — to grow
  9. wake — a trail
  10. row — a line
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. season — in sport
  14. fall — the season
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. fall — to drop
  18. staff — a stick
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. fall — to drop
  23. staff — employees
  24. row — to paddle

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