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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.

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: mark · snap · straw · wax · spring · season · firm · file

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. firm — a company
  4. firm — steady
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. spring — of water
  9. season — of the year
  10. mark — a grade
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. file — a line of people
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. mark — a trace
  15. file — a tool
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. firm — decided
  20. wax — to grow
  21. file — a document
  22. snap — to click
  23. spring — the season
  24. season — in sport

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