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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 116 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. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. mate — a partner
  4. pop — to visit
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. dip — to sink
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. file — a document
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. file — a tool
  15. rash — hasty
  16. mate — to breed
  17. capital — a city
  18. wax — to grow
  19. mate — a friend
  20. file — a line of people
  21. rash — a series
  22. pop — soda
  23. capital — money
  24. pop — music

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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