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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: season · wind · pass · pitcher · wax · jam · pop · bear

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  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. pop — soda
  2. wax — to grow
  3. bear — the animal
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. pop — to visit
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. pop — music
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. bear — the animal
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. season — of the year
  19. pass — a permit
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. wind — moving air
  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