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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mate · bound · tube · squash · capital · spell · wax · plane

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. plane — a tool
  3. spell — letters
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. spell — a short time
  6. spell — magic
  7. squash — the sport
  8. wax — to grow
  9. squash — to crush
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. bound — certain
  12. mate — a partner
  13. capital — money
  14. capital — a city
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. mate — a friend
  17. tube — the underground
  18. bound — tied together
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. tube — a container
  24. bound — obliged

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