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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: chip · wax · vault · land · mate · spell · spring · leaves

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. mate — to breed
  3. land — ground
  4. spring — of water
  5. wax — to grow
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. mate — a partner
  8. spell — letters
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. land — a country
  12. spell — magic
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. mate — a friend
  15. chip — for betting
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. vault — a safe
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. spell — a short time
  20. spring — a coil
  21. chip — to eat
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. land — to come down
  24. spring — the season

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