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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 120 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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. object — to protest
  4. cap — a lid
  5. drill — a practice
  6. spring — a coil
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. object — an aim
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. wax — to grow
  11. cap — of ice
  12. object — a thing
  13. cap — a hat
  14. season — of the year
  15. drill — army training
  16. spring — the season
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. spring — of water
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. season — in sport
  24. drill — the tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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