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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. wax — to grow
  3. date — the fruit
  4. land — a country
  5. land — to come down
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. rash — a series
  9. toast — bread
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. rash — hasty
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. wind — moving air
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. vault — a safe
  20. scale — size or range
  21. scale — in music
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. wind — moving air

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