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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: land · wax · bay · pop · snap · mark · chair · spring

  1. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. pop — soda
  4. wax — to grow
  5. chair — a leader
  6. mark — a trace
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. spring — of water
  9. land — ground
  10. land — a country
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. pop — to visit
  15. mark — a grade
  16. spring — the season
  17. land — to come down
  18. snap — to click
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. pop — music
  22. spring — a coil
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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