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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. game — a match
  6. craft — a skill
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. saw — the tool
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. game — wild animals
  14. wax — to grow
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. toast — bread
  18. saw — the tool
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. branch — a division
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. dip — to sink
  24. craft — a handicraft

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