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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. pop — to visit
  3. wax — to grow
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. bulb — for light
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. mate — to breed
  10. pop — music
  11. bulb — for light
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. mate — a partner
  15. cap — of ice
  16. wind — moving air
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. wind — moving air
  19. pop — soda
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. mate — a friend
  22. cap — a hat
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. cap — a lid

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