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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. cap — a hat
  5. wax — to grow
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. sharp — clever
  8. cap — of ice
  9. spell — a short time
  10. cap — a lid
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. spell — letters
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. spell — magic
  18. land — a country
  19. land — ground
  20. land — to come down
  21. present — a gift
  22. present — the time now
  23. present — there
  24. dip — to sink

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