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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  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. present — there
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. content — the amount
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. drill — army training
  6. content — happy
  7. drill — the tool
  8. wind — moving air
  9. ball — a great time
  10. present — a gift
  11. wax — to grow
  12. drill — a practice
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. ground — the earth
  15. present — the time now
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bulb — for light
  20. ground — crushed
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. ground — a position
  23. ball — a dance
  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