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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. key — for a lock
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. fork — in a road
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. wax — to grow
  9. court — of a king
  10. season — in sport
  11. court — for sport
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. lean — to bend
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. lean — thin
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. cold — an illness
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. court — of law
  22. key — in music
  23. key — the most important part
  24. season — of the year

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