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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.

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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. charge — electricity
  4. drill — a practice
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. charge — a price
  7. wax — to grow
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. drill — army training
  10. clip — for paper
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. clip — to cut
  13. craft — a skill
  14. charge — in control
  15. drill — the tool
  16. craft — boats
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. clip — a video

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