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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. race — humankind
  3. rule — government
  4. wax — to grow
  5. race — a contest
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. mate — to breed
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. capital — money
  11. chair — a leader
  12. wound — an injury
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. rule — a law
  15. mate — a partner
  16. mate — a friend
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. race — the arms race
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. capital — a city
  23. wound — an injury
  24. temple — a place of worship

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