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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. wax — to grow
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. chest — of your body
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. chest — a box
  9. object — a thing
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. rush — hurry
  12. object — an aim
  13. row — to paddle
  14. object — to protest
  15. bat — the animal
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. row — a line
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. chest — of your body
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. bat — in an idiom

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