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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.

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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. cap — of ice
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. field — a subject
  6. drill — the tool
  7. land — to come down
  8. capital — a city
  9. drill — army training
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. field — for sport
  12. cap — a lid
  13. land — a country
  14. capital — money
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. field — farmland
  18. drill — a practice
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. wax — to grow
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. cap — a hat
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. land — ground

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