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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.

Make a worksheet

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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. pop — music
  3. spring — of water
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. hand — in cards
  6. pop — soda
  7. spring — the season
  8. bass — the fish
  9. wax — to grow
  10. hand — help
  11. pop — to visit
  12. bass — low music
  13. spring — a coil
  14. fine — all right
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. fine — high quality
  18. wax — for sculpting

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