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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. land — to come down
  3. land — ground
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. object — a thing
  6. wax — to grow
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. dip — to sink
  23. object — to protest
  24. object — an aim

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