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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.

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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: drill · track · wax · season · mark · snap · bear · pitcher

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. season — of the year
  3. wax — to grow
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. drill — army training
  6. track — a song
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. snap — to click
  9. mark — a trace
  10. bear — the animal
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. mark — a grade
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. drill — a practice
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. drill — the tool
  19. track — to keep track
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. track — a path
  22. season — in sport
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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