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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. cell — a phone
  3. wax — to grow
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — of water
  6. race — the arms race
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. cell — in biology
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. spring — the season
  14. race — humankind
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. race — a contest
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. roll — a list
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. roll — a cake

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