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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. spell — letters
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. firm — steady
  6. wax — to grow
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. spell — a short time
  10. spell — magic
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. charge — electricity
  13. firm — decided
  14. bat — the animal
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. charge — a price
  17. firm — a company
  18. charge — in control

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