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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: wax · pitcher · leaves · fan · wind · fine · season · pop

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fine — all right
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. season — of the year
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. pop — to visit
  10. wax — to grow
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. wind — moving air
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. pop — soda
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. wind — moving air
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. pop — music
  21. season — in sport
  22. fine — high quality
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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