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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. wax — to grow
  3. land — to come down
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. land — a country
  6. fall — to drop
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. chip — for betting
  9. mark — a trace
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. fine — all right
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. fine — high quality
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. fall — to drop
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. land — ground
  19. snap — to click
  20. fall — the season
  21. mark — a grade
  22. rock — a stone
  23. chip — to eat
  24. wax — in the ear

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