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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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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. wax — to grow
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. fine — all right
  8. game — a match
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. fine — high quality
  14. chest — a box
  15. game — wild animals
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. bowl — to roll

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