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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. pop — soda
  8. scale — size or range
  9. wax — to grow
  10. pop — to visit
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. bound — obliged
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. land — ground
  16. bound — certain
  17. land — to come down
  18. bound — tied together
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. scale — in music
  22. bat — the animal
  23. pop — music
  24. stand — to bear

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