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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. spring — of water
  5. squash — the sport
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. season — in sport
  8. wake — a trail
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. pop — music
  12. spring — the season
  13. squash — to crush
  14. pop — soda
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. spring — a coil
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. season — of the year
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. pop — to visit
  23. wax — to grow
  24. straw — dry grass

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