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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. scale — in music
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. deal — to handle
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. game — wild animals
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. rest — what's left
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. file — a document
  16. file — a tool
  17. file — a line of people
  18. scale — size or range
  19. game — a match
  20. rest — what's left
  21. wax — to grow
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. rest — a break

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