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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'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. band — a ring
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. wax — to grow
  7. rest — a break
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. land — a country
  10. prune — to trim
  11. face — to confront
  12. face — part of the head
  13. fine — all right
  14. fine — high quality
  15. rest — what's left
  16. land — to come down
  17. face — to point toward
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. band — a music group
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. prune — to trim
  24. rest — what's left

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